A fine Line
by Erin Peepsta
Summary: Follow the try and tribulations of a soldier in the 141. Through high and lows, will she prevail through it all? Please rate and review! Also note, this is meant to have stupid funny scenes, so don't flame me if something doesn't make sense.
1. Case of the missing hot cocoa

The day starts out slow, no missions to run or briefings for that matter. I meander into the kitchen, my short brown hair swaying slightly. I grab a coffee cup out of the cupboard and pour some water into the cup. Checking to make sure no one is watching, I opened another cabinet and pulled a bag of hot chocolate mix out of it's clever hiding space in a bag of 'onions'. There's only enough to make one cup left so I place the cup of water in the microwave and let it go for a minute. When the microwave dings, I take the cup from it and pour the rest of the hot cocoa into the water. I grab a slender silver spoon from one of the drawers, stirring the cup vigorously. When the hot cocoa has finally mixed with the hot water, I tap the excess water from the spoon and set it silently into the sink. The warm feeling from the cup is intoxicating and I'm about to take it all in when I see something shinny out of the corner of my eye. I set the cup down and go to investigate the random object. To my dismay, it's just a shinny wrapper. I scowl, walking back into the kitchen to enjoy my hot cocoa. I stop short as my eyes fall upon the cup. The once steamy goodness that filled the cup was now MIA. I let out a small cry and rush over, trying to figure out what happened. Anger, mixed with sadness hits me as I take the cup into my hands. Anger is present as I growl, "Oh, someone is going to be dead REAL soon!" to no one but myself. Just then, Ghost walks in wearing his balaclava, black T-shirt and cargo pants.

He looks at me, raising an eyebrow, "What's up? You sound steamed." He said plainly as he stops a few feet away from me. I toss him the cup which he easily catches with one hand.

"Somebody drank my hot cocoa, that's why I'm steamed." I reply hotly as I watch him look over the cup in his hand.

Ghost gives me a look as he sets the cup down on one of the many counters in the kitchen. "Don't you think this is a little, I don't know, stupid?" he said out front.

I cross my arms and glare at him darkly. "For any other cup of hot cocoa, I won't give a second thought. But THIS was a special cup! My friend, Moli, made me it before I came here and that was the last of it!" I said gesturing with my hands.

He holds the same look he did before as he said, "Can't you just get your friend to make more?" He obviously didn't understand what I was getting at.

So I throw my arms up in the air, my eyes rolling up to the ceiling, "Oh, why didn't _**I **_think of that?" I answer back, my voice dripping with sarcasm, "Maybe because care packets can only come from immediate family members!" My arms fall down to my sides in frustration. Ghost mutters a simple 'oh.' I nod, "So now I'm on a mission to find the bastard who drank it. Currently, I don't know what I'll do to that person when I find them…..but it'll be bad." I said as a creepy smile flashes onto my face.

Ghost straightens his back, "Would you like some help?" he said.

Looking at him, I smile and reply, "Of course. Go get me everyone's files." It's simple, short and to the point, because I couldn't let the trail run cold. I see Ghost raise an eyebrow at me in confusion.

"And, why, may I ask, is the reason?" he said, questioning my methods of finding the perpetrator.

I answer him smoothly, "There's a certain ingredient that was in the hot cocoa that I'm sure could deduce who drank it by their allergic reaction. It's a start and hopefully it'll point us to the culprit!" Feeling pleased with my detective smarts and lingo; I guess watching _CSI _was beneficial. Ghost nods before exiting the room.

A few minutes later

I've been eyeing the cup up, using a magnifying glass to see closer up. I even snatched some clear tape to see if I could find some fingerprints. But to my dismay, I find none. Ghost joins me, carrying the files of everyone in our division of the Task Force.

"What do you see?" he asks, setting the files down on the steel stove. I shrug, feeling my hopes dwindle.

"Absolutely nothing. This is just a damn dead end. Whoever did this either wiped their prints from the cup or used gloves." I answer doubtfully. My eyes catch the files on the stove and I walk over to them, "Ah, you got the files. Good." I mumble as I spill over them, searching for clues. Opening Captain Mactavish file, my eyes fall upon the information list. By allergies, there is only one allergy and I'm pretty damn sure there's no allergy to 'respect less FNGs.' After Mactavish's file, I look through the rest and sigh as I realize none of them have allergies to the ingredient in the hot cocoa. I can feel the trail starting to become cold. This had just gotten difficult as I hated when things got difficult. I mentally go over the list of everyone in the division, crossing off every person whose file I went through. That's when it clicks and the trail is lit up like the fourth of July, revealing everything. Ghost gathers all the files and starts to leave. A smile creeps across my face. "Funny Ghost, I don't remember seeing your file in that stack. Hmm, I wonder why?" I ask, trying my best not to give away what I know.

He looks at me and shrugs, "I haven't the slightest clu-" he answers in his British accent but I cut him off.

"Stow it. I know it was you Ghost. Want to know how? I'll start with the obvious: you're wearing your balaclava. The one you only wear for missions, training _**OR **_to hide an allergic reaction to cinnamon! Clever, very clever. Then you wiped your prints off the cup and you neglected to bring me you file! Also, you jumped at the opportunity to help so I wouldn't think it was you." I answer, jumping and dramatically pointing at him, "Now admit it!"

An upward crease forms in his mask where his mouth is as he looks at me. "Ah, so you found me out. You have beaten me, Holmes. Curse you and your detective skills!" he said with fake discouragement, "Now what are you going to do?" He crosses his arms as if to show he could easily over power me with what ever I did.

I smirk as I lean against the counter, "Elementary, my dear Moriarty…there are ways to hurt someone, not necessarily physical pain." I said, one upping him with the quote and name reference.

A couple minutes later

Ghost is strapped to a chair, forced to watch Dora repeatedly, on the verge of a mental breakdown. I smile, "And so it seems I come out of this one. Cover your trail better next time." Mactavish walks in and pauses.

"Um, do I want to know?" he asks, obviously not that interested in the occurrence.

I look at him, "He stole something from me, my hot cocoa. Nobody. Steals. My. Hot cocoa." I hiss, enunciating every word carefully as I feeling my eye twitch slightly.

Mactavish nods, "Well, I'll remember that." He said and looks over to Ghost, "Umm…I think he just died."

"I think so too….no one can stand Dora for 5 hours straight! That's suicide!" I answer back.


	2. Dinner with the FNG part 1

Dinner is set and the guys are all staring it down feverishly, ready to pounce on the food. I step back before uttering the words, "Bon a petit!" This releases them and they start devouring the food. I find a seat in between Ghost and Roach. Roach has grabbed a chicken breast and is trying to cut across it. But he fails to note the fact that chicken breasts have a bone in the middle. We all stare at him, stifling laughter at his idiotic FNG behavior.

Roach finally gives up, slamming the knife down forcefully. "It won't cut." He mumbles fiercely.

I roll my auburn eyes, a smile finding its way to my face. "There's a bone in the center, Roach. Try cutting it vertically." I reply lightly. Roach tries my way and sees it cut, embarrassment flooding up to his face as he mutters a simple, 'oh'. Someone mutters something about, 'Wow, he's such an FNG.' Roach obviously hears.

Roach looks up and raises an eyebrow. "What does FNG mean?" he asks, treading lightly, so he doesn't embarrass himself again in one sitting.

I pat him lightly on the arm, turning back to my dinner, "You'll learn it when you're older." I said, not really in the mood to make fun of him.

Meat laughs with food in his mouth, "Yeah, don't forget your bib, kid!" he said, laughing at his own joke.

I stare at Meat cooly, "Don't talk with your mouth full, Meat. You'll choke." I said, sighing audibly. Round, what was it, 123, of Meat's constant badgering of Roach. My eyes roll to the ceiling. _Oh lord, help us…_

Meat smirks and waves me off. "Yeah right, that's just a myth-" he starts but is cut off by his own choking. Meat starts coughing, trying his best to dislodge the piece of food stuck in his throat. He falls over, still coughing. I glance over the table, shaking my head slightly.

"What did I tell you?" I mumble as Archer springs into action. He grabs Meat and starts doing the Heimlich maneuver to no avail. Meat is starting to turn blue in the face and I finally start to panic. "Somebody, knife me!" I yell, intending to use it to free the object from Meat's throat. What I wasn't intending, was for Roach to take it literally. Because he takes a knife and actually knifes me in the thigh. I stop abruptly, looking slowly down at the knife then I let out a storm of swears. "OH MY F-ING GOD!!! THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!" I hiss loudly. Roach shrinks back into his chair, feeling 10 times worst than before. Mactavish finally punches Meat in the gut; this causes a sudden burst of air come through his throat and dislodges the piece of food. Meat leans on the table, trying to catch his breath. Surprisingly, through all of this, Ghost has been sitting calmly watching the events unfold. The action dies down and everything seems OK. That is until the pain finally hits me after the adrenaline rush. I wince, and remove the knife from my leg. By now, blood has started staining my pants around the wound.

Ghost looks at me, looking first at me, my wound then back to me. "That doesn't look too good." He said concern almost as heavy as his accent.

I narrow my eyes, "What do you mean, it's just a flesh wound!" I remark, sarcasms present in my voice.

Ghost rolls his eyes, "Sarcasms….really?" he said shortly. A smile appears on my face.

I shrug, "Hey, that's the only way to get through the day." I said lightly. Mactavish is grilling Roach for his idiot behavior. I shake my head, regretting it immediately for my head starts spinning.

Ghost notices and makes the observation. "I'm pretty sure you should get that patched up." He said.

I roll my eyes, "No, I just may have cut a major artery, no big deal!" I reply sardonically. Ghost ignores the comment and picks me up bridal style.

He nods at Archer, the medic, "Come on Archer, we'll leave Mactavish to his rant." He said, motioning his head towards the Scot. Archer simply nods and we make our way to the infirmary.

On the way we run into Worm who is just making his way down to the dinning room. "Dude, what the fuck happened in there?" he asks out right.

Archer motions with his head, "Come along. We'll explain on the way." He said, as we continue on our way with our new addition to the group.

Worm tilts his head to the side, visibly confused. "Where are we going?" he asks.

"To the infirmary." Answers Ghost.

"Why are we going to the infirmary?" Worm still questions.

I scowl, "Because Roach stabbed me in the leg. Why do you think Ghost is carrying me?" I hiss, not believing how he can't piece these things together.

We end up telling him the whole story. Worm's face turns into a fake sad face. "Man, I feel bad for Roach." He mutters.

We blink and Archer voices our thoughts. "Why?" he asks, wanting to say more about how much of an idiot Roach was but Archer isn't like that, he's too nice. I shift uncomfortably in Ghost's arms, my mind wandering to Roach and what his punishment would be.

Worm merely shrugs, "If I was him, I'd feel really bad because it sounds like the whole thing was his fault. Course Meat choking wasn't his fault, 'cause Meat's an idiot." He said, piecing things together. Archer shoots him a look when he mentions Meat being an idiot but Worm doesn't see it.

I nod, agreeing with him that Meat wasn't all that smart. He's more brawn than brainy but I guess it works for him. "Yeah and anyone would probably stabbed someone in a high stress situation like that if they said 'knife me'" I comment, thinking of how I could see someone doing that.

Worm gives a slight nod, "Mm, but I mean did you see how MAD Mactavish was? I'd be scared, especially with Mactavish because…Well I don't want to scare you, with some story." He ends with a cliff hanger.

My eyes widen, wanting to know more of this story of which he speaks of. "What are you talking about? Tell me!!" I reply, eagerness present in my voice. Worm smiles as he looks back at me.

"Well if you really want to know. Captain Mactavish……is. A. Vampire!" he said, enunciating the word vampire sharply.

I stare at him, my eyes widening. "No way…" I mumble, entranced with the story.

Worm grins, showing his teeth, "Yes way! I saw him take down a deer with his bare hands! Then tear it limb from limb." He said creepily. I shake slightly, "OH SWEET JESUS HE BEZ A CANIBOL!!!!" I squeak, covering my eyes.

Ghost heaves a sigh audibly. "Mactavish is not a vampire. Worm is simply playing off your fears after you saw that scary vampire movie." He replies curtly, shooting Worm a look.

I blink, removing my hands from my face. "Oh…..But twilight's not a scary movie!" I said, pouting. Ghost rolls his eyes, "Please, Robert Patterson's acting was so bad it was scary!" he remarked. I laugh slightly, because it was true.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Please do not take offense to the previous comment made by the characters (even if it may be true). I promise there won't be any more Twilight references…..or will there? Seriously though, I don't know. Now back to the story!

Once we arrive at the infirmary, Worm parts ways. But not before he leaves us with, "Well just be glad it's not a full moon!" His laughter carries down the hall as he disappears around a corner. I grimace, shouting after him, "Hey, studies said crimes are usually committed on a full moon! So, yeah!"

Well, I hoped you enjoyed the story so far. :) This is a really long part so I kinda split it up. Now, please Rate and review! :D Because you're cool like that, right?


	3. Dinner with the FNG part 2

We enter the infirmary and Ghost sets me down on a bed. Archer immediately goes to work on my leg. He examines it, "Well lucky for you, the knife just missed severing your femoral artery." He said, grabbing a wad of gauze and pressing it against the wound, "Keep pressure on this till I come back." Before I can comment, he skates away on a wheelie chair. I sigh, applying pressure to my wound. This escalates the pain in my leg and causes me to scrunch my face up in pain. Archer comes back with more gauze and disinfectant. My eyes widen as I stare at the solution

"That's not going to hurt, is it?" I ask sheepishly. Archer looks at it then at me, smiling, "Course." He answers back confidently. I shrink back, my face flushing. Archer sees I believed him and answers quickly, "I hope you know I'm kidding!" I heave a heavy sigh of relief as a smile finds it way to my face through the pain. We both share a laugh. Out of all the guys, Archer was the one I was most close too. Just to be clear, there's no love connection between us. Because, Archer's a homosexual. Except no one knows this, besides me, because of the armed forces strict 'don't ask, don't tell policy.' Because of this fact, I was comfortable with him working on my leg. But having Ghost watch, eh, not so comforting. Hey, don't get me wrong. I know Ghost isn't that kinda guy but it still felt weird even if he's my second best guy friend. By now, the blood has started clotting and Archer is wrapping my leg up. Ghost finally speaks from where he leans against the wall.

"You know, you didn't cry when you got stabbed. I mean, that looked like it hurt, a lot." He commented. I simply look at him and shrug, "Well, it was more of a shock than hurt at first. And besides, I've given up on crying for pointless things that can be fixed or solved." I answer back.

Ghost raises an eyebrow. "Really and how is that?" he asked, thoroughly interested in the backstory.

I frown and look him straight in the eyes. "Because I learned a long time ago that crying over spilled milk isn't going to reverse what happened. But I can tell you want a deeper reason, so I'll tell you. When I was young, I lost my favorite uncle unexpectedly. It hit me hard-real hard. I became an emotional wreck and cried at every little bad thing that happened. Death was new to me, it scared me. I wondered what happened after death, did you go to heaven or did you just….die? My friends deserted me……or did I desert them? Either way, I drifted away from everyone I ever loved because I didn't want to feel the pain of losing someone I loved. Finally, I was done with being sad and emotional about every little thing. So I pledged I won't cry over anything except the death of some one I care about dearly. And that's only a small group of people!" I said, shrugging lightly, "Simply, I don't cry because why should I? Death comes naturally….everyone dies. But that small group, my closest friends, it'll be hard to see them go." I think to my friends and family back in the states, my heart aches.

Ghost smirks, "So are we in that group?" he asks, referring to the group of people I'd actually cry for.

I look up at him and Archer, smiling, "Yes, of course! Whether that is a good thing in this line of work, I don't know. But I certainly wouldn't have it any other way!" I chime, happiness bubbling inside of me and filling up the space of sadness I had when I was talking before. Archer finishes wrapping my leg and hands me a pill bottle.

"Alright you're all patched up. I don't want you stressing the stitches, so you're gonna have to take it easy for a while. It may hurt a little when you walk on it so take one of these if that happens." He informed me and I nod accordingly. I nod and stand up, wincing as a jolt of numb pain hits me. Ignoring it, I limp out the door painfully.


	4. Paranoid kitchenphenia

Next Day

I enter the kitchen, my leg still in pain. But the pills Archer gave me were helping a lot. I start pulling down the tools to make tonight's dinner. For the record, I do most of the cooking because the last time any of the guys tried to cook….it didn't turn out so well. Let's just say none of them can touch the stove and leave it at that. I've busied myself so much that I don't notice Roach slink in. I reach for a pot and over extend my wrist, cause me to yelp slightly out of shock.

"Are you OK?!?!??" he said suddenly. His outburst causes me to jump.

I look at him, "Whoa! When the fuck did you get there?!?" I ask, catching my breath after the shock, my heart beating loudly in my chest.

Roach shakes his head, worry weighing heavy in his face. "Never mind that, are you OK?" He asks. I open my mouth to answer but Roach continues talking, "If your hurt then that means you can't cook and if you can't cook we're all going to die. And it'll be my fault 'cause Mactavish told me to make sure you don't get injured and I'm sooooooo dead-" I slap him across the face, shutting him up. _God, since when did he talk so much?!_

"Roach, calm down! I'm fine; I just stretched my arm a little too far. I tend to do that a lot." I reply cooly. Roach blinks, staring down at me.

"Oh….you sure?" he asks, still worried I'm only saying that to make him chill out.

Rolling my eyes, I answer, "Yes, Gary, I'm sure." I said, using his real name instead of his code name to get through to him, "Now what's this about Mactavish telling you to watch out for me?"

Roach stares at his feet. "Yeah…after the….stabbing incident, Mactavish ordered me to make sure you don't get hurt on my watch and if I fail, he'll kill me!" he said nervously. A sly smile falls onto my face.

"Oh really." I said curtly, then falling to the ground in fake pain, yelling in a fake surprised voice, "Ow! I've fallen and hurt myself on Roach's watch!" Out of no where, Mactavish appears and beats on Roach. All the while, I regain my composer. Mactavish walks away and Roach stumbles up bruised.

He gives me a look of disgust, "That wasn't very nice!" he huffed, crossing his arms.

I stick my tongue out at him. "I know!" I answer childishly. I turn and go back to work on making dinner. Its then Roach notices my bandage is loose on my leg.

He points it out, "Your bandage is loose….want me to get it?" he asks.

My eyes look down at it as I'm preoccupied with other stuff. I nod, turning around to face him. My face is stuck in the cook book, finding the recipe for spaghetti. Roach kneels down reaches for my leg. It's then Ghost walks in. He stops short, and we freeze. Without warning, Ghost's hands are around Roach's neck. I blink, trying to grasp what just happened.

Ghost is screaming at Roach. "What the FUCK did you think you were doing soldier?!?!?!" he growls. Roach chokes, trying to justify his actions.

I toss the cook book on the counter and run over to them. "Ghost, for cripes sakes your killing him!!" I shriek, trying to pull him off to no avail. Then my eyes fall upon the water sprayer on the sink. I grab it, turning the water to cold. I spray them both. "Hey, cool it you two!" I hiss, forcing them apart. My worry was more on Ghost attacking Roach then vice versa. I push Ghost lightly, bringing his attention to me. "Hey, HEY!! EXPLAIN YOUR ACTIONS NOW, SOLDIER!" I yelled, speaking with authority I didn't have. I pause, _damn that felt good, _I thought as I stifle a laugh.

Ghost's eyes share a look of indifference to Roach. "It looked like he was going to do something-." He murmured.

Roach coughs, regaining his normal breathing pattern as he looked at Ghost with an annoyed look. "Oh my god, I was just going to tighten her bandage!" he said, taken a back by Ghost's accusation.

I nod, agreeing with Roach. "Yeah….but I get how you could think since from where you stood it looked like that." I mumble. Ghost blinks and scratches the back of his head. "Sorry about that Roach. It's just, I see Erin as sort of a younger sister and-" he starts.

Roach holds up a hand, a soft smile on his face. "It's cool, I know how it feels to be an older brother." He answers, sadness present in his aqua eyes and I'm now interested in learning the back story of the statement. But Roach changes the subject to my bandage. "Um, bandage?" he said, tentatively.

I flutter. "Oh, I almost forgot!" I laugh, hopping onto the counter. I hand him my leg, not really thinking much of this action. Roach gulps, his face reddening as he wraps the bandage tight. He legs go of my leg and I hop off the counter, checking the tightening job. "Nice!" I commented, then shooing the two of them off, "Now outta da kitchen! I have to make some spaghetti!" Roach scoots out and I think Ghost follows casually. I place some garlic in the pot and turn the stove on, letting the garlic cook. It's then I remember I need tomato paste. When I turn to go get it, I nearly collide with Ghost. I jump back, "JEBUS, Ghost! Ninja much?" I said my voice high.

Ghost smiles, but his green eyes don't share the same feeling. "Course, it's the only way to freak you out." He answers shortly.

Scowling, I cross my arms, "Who told you could come back into the kitchen?" I said flatly, not liking it when people watched me cook. It felt like I was on some reality cooking show, like _Hell's kitchen _or something.

Ghost shrugs, "I did." He said plainly, not seeing what the big deal was.

I point to the door, "Please vacate the kitchen." I said simply, not wanting to come off as stingy. Ghost simply leans against one of the counter, "Mmm, is that anyway to talk to your lieutenant?" he said slyly. I blink, Ghost rarely flaunted off his title so I stop let up. "Well I'm just saying, I don't like it when people watch me cook because it's like I go into my own little world. And I don't like it when people come into my world, it's like 'whoa, man! Just, whoa….this is awkward!' I mean, you try concentrating on something when someone is watching every little move you do!" I mumble.

Ghost crosses his arms, "What do you have like, paranoid cooking?" he said, a smile appears on his face but is quickly extinguish, "Anyway…on to business. Erin….what happened back there was pretty…..suggestive."

I look at my feet, "It LOOKED that way, and it wasn't supposed to be suggestive." I mutter under my breath. Ghost continues on, ignoring my comment, "What if the captain saw that?" Shrugging, "Well, I'm pretty sure he'd have the same reaction as you did." I said curtly.

Ghost shakes his head, "Erin….it looked like you were leading him on." He said quietly.

The sentence hits me like a slap and I look at him, shocked, "Excuse me?! Are you accusing me of leading _Roach_ on?! What do you think I am a slut?" I stop, looking at him, "Oh my god, you're so calling me a slut!" I stare him, mouth a gap.

Ghost shakes his head, "No, nothing of the sort. Just don't go leading guys on." He said. I put my hands on my hips, "Ghost I-" I start. But Ghost holds a hand to stop me. "Let me finish. Please be careful with how you act. You're on a task force with mostly guys. Some of who haven't seem a woman since, who knows how long! Watch your self." He said coldly.

A smile forms on my lips. "Jealous, oh don't be!" I said, sarcasm faintly present in my voice as I pinch his face. Ghost grips my wrist, glaring down at me. "Don't." he said shortly, obviously telling me I've struck a nerve. Jerking my hand away, I give him a look. "Gosh, I was kidding..." I mumble under my breath. I turn back and notice the garlic is done cooking, so I add the tomato sauce and paste. The silence is awkward and I eventually break it. "I can take care of my self, thank you VERY much!" I hiss.

Ghost shifts uneasily, knowing I'm offended by what he said. A sigh is omitted by him, "Look, I'm sorry if I upset you. I just don't want you to get hurt." He said, relaxing in his voice and presence.

This makes me feel bad for being offended. "No, don't apologize. I know you're only looking out for me. I appreciate it, I really do." I said calmly. I stir the sauce occasionally. It's then my mind wanders to Roach and his statement of knowing how it feels to be an older brother. This intrigues me and I look at Ghost. "Hey, do you know what Roach meant by 'I know how it feels to be an older brother'?" I said, hoping Ghost knows.

Ghost shakes his head, "No, I haven't the slightest clue. Besides, you should know since you read everyone's file." He said, pointing out that fact.

I smile sheepishly, "Yeah, but I wasn't necessarily looking for that information. So I don't really know either." I said. Looking back at the sauce, I then add the meat balls. "So anyway, how's-" I start, looking back at Ghost but he's disappeared. I pout, "Hmm, guess that's why the call him Ghost. He has a knack of disappearing." I turn back to what I was doing, looking at the cook book and nearly jump out of my skin when I see Ghost standing there.

"Funny, I would have thought you'd say it was because I almost evaporate through walls." He replies, laughing slightly.

My eyes twitches, "My god, I swear I've almost died of shock 3 times today…" I mumble, letting my heart relax.


	5. Brother, oh brother

Author's Note: Personally, I'd like to thank all those who continue to read this story. I hope you enjoy it. I'd also like to point out, that I'm not trying to make them funny :) they just come out that way. This chapter is rather a sad one but it gives a little back story to Roach and why he's so quiet. Enjoy and please rate and review!

After dinner, I find Roach packing for a mission in his room. I knock lightly on the open door, drawing his attention from his knapsack to me. "Hey, can we talk?" I ask simply.

Roach shrugs, finishing and sitting on his messy cot. "Sure." He answers simply.

I enter his room; it's a pretty small four sided room. The cot takes up haft of one side of the wall and a bureau drawer sits on the opposite wall by the door to the closet. I stand in the middle, for a guy his room wasn't nearly as bad as some of the others. "I'm sorry for what happened in the kitchen." I said, rubbing the side of my arm, feeling terrible.

Roach raises an eyebrow, leaning back on his cot, "OK. Is that it? Because I'm about to go set off for Russia with Mactavish soon." He said, quickly, rechecking his knapsack to make sure he had everything.

"What did you mean by you knew what it felt to be an older brother?" I ask out right, causing him to slow. He doesn't look at me, staring at the knapsack intensively like it'll run away if he takes his eyes off of it.

"So you heard that…" he mutters. I nod, waiting for him to tell me. He stands up, walking over to the bureau drawer, picking something up and returning to me. What he hands me is a picture of a much younger Roach, around 16, and a boy about 11 years old. "Jim…he's my younger brother. That's why I know how it feels to be an older brother." He said shortly, walking back to the cot and picking up his knapsack and slinging it over one shoulder.

I look up, "What happened? I can tell you're not saying something Roach." I said bluntly. Roach walks over, taking the picture from me and staring at it.

"I was supposed to go trick-or-treating with him on Halloween, but instead I went out drinking with friends. Jim never came home….they found his body a couple days later. Apparently, some creep sexually assaulted him and killed him." He said coldly, his hands clenching into fists, "I should have just gone with him, instead of getting hammered with my dumb ass friends."

I lay a hand on his arm delicately, "Oh Gary….I-I'm sorry, I didn't know." I whispered, looking up at him. There's a million different things I wish I could say in this situation, why I didn't I have no clue. He doesn't answer; instead he folds the picture up and slides it into his pocket. My hand falls away from him, as I continue to stare up at him. "You couldn't have known what would have happened..." I said pointlessly.

Roach shakes his head angrily, "No, but I couldn't have been there to protect him. Some big brother I turned out to be…." He mutters, looking away.

I furrow my brow, "Don't say that, I'm sure you made one hell of a brother!" I said, trying to cheer him up.

He shakes his head, "No…I always ignored him. I acted like he was a nuisance and I always ditched him. As you can see, it evidentially caught up with me." He said, sighing as he ran a hand through his shaggy dirty blonde hair, uneasily.

"We all do things that in the future they come back to bite us in the ass, Roach. All in all, we end up going on because that's life." I said, looking up at him seriously.

Roach nods as he rubs his nose on his sleeve, "I guess your right, sometimes I forget to do that." He mutters, nodding toward the calender on his wall, "Happy Halloween…" The month, I almost forgotten, was October and today was coincidentally the 31st. Before I can utter a word of condolence, Roach has drifted passed me and to the door. He mutters a simple goodbye before disappearing into the hall. I grimace, feeling absolutely horrible for bringing up the whole thing. Without thinking, I dash into the hall as Roach is about the turn the corner.

"ROACH!" I call after and he stops, looking up at me. I nod at him, "Jim wouldn't want to see you mope….because little siblings don't like to see their mentors sad." I said, calmly. Roach is taken a back, but nods back as a small smile finds it way onto his face. He then disappears around the corner, going to start the mission with Mactavish. A sigh of relief passes through my lips, I couldn't bear to see someone try to walk the life of utter sadness and 'what if' scenarios like I did.


	6. I'm too cold to stay frosty!

Another lazy day engulfs me. I lay on the couch in the rec room, flipping through channels. I stop, noticing the flashing words of 'breaking news' on _CNN_. Rolling up to a sitting position, I turn the volume up. The news reporter has a slight accent while a building stands in the back ground with yellow police tape in Russian. "I'm here at Zakhaev International Airport in Moscow, Russia. Where terrible acts of genocide have taken place. More than a thousand of Russian civilians are dead after supposed terrorists attacked the terminal. But that's where the story takes a bizarre twist. Reports from the Russian police have stated that the terrorists spoke in English and one dead terrorist, left behind, gives insight that this attack was done by the U.S.-" He remarks, continuing to tell the story. But my mind has stopped listening. I stare at the TV, unable to get my mind around this fact. Ghost walks into the room and we share a look.

I gulp, trying to swallow the lump of shock in my throat. "Uh, Ghost? America's screwed." I divulged.

He raises an eyebrow, "Why, what happened?" he questions.

I shake my head, "Some terrorists attacked an airport in Russia and killed a bunch of civies. They're saying the terrorists were American and-" I start. But stop as Mactavish walks in.

"Briefing room. Now." He said shortly. Ghost follows him and I'm left there, until Mactavish pops his head into the room. "Uh, that means you too, Erin." He said.

I blink, and then rub the back of my head, "Oh sorry." I flustered. I follow him out of the room. We enter the briefing room; it's a small room with an oval table in the middle. Around the table sits the rest of our team mates who are chatting amongst themselves. The table is full, saved for Mactavish's spot, the head of the table and my spot in between Archer and Ghost. I slide into my spot quietly, shooting a haft smile to Archer who returns it in full.

Archer is beaming with excitement, always game for a mission. "What do you think they're going to talk about? A new mission? Oh I hope so!" he said lively.

I frown, shrugging, "Yeah, probably some mission involving the terrorist attack on Russian soil by some Americans." I retorted, thinking he already knows this. The chatter stops and people stare at me. I look around at them, wondering why they stopped talking. "What, something I say?" I ask perplexed.

"What do you _mean _some Americans attacked Russia?!?" Meat asks, staring at me.

I blink, "Does no one else know this?!? It was on the news, like, a couple minutes ago!" I said, taken aback by this fact. I take my iPod touch out, typing in the story to show him. For passing it, I slide it across the table to Meat.

Mactavish scowls, trying to make sense of this. "What reason would America have to commit such an act?" he grumbles in his Scottish accent.

"It wasn't suppose to look like that." Said a voice from the doorway. Standing there is an older man, late 50's early 60's, wearing American styled camo for desert camouflage and a beret. Everyone stands up, saluting him. I join them, wondering who this guy is.

Taking a seat at the head of the table, this is our sign to take a seat. "What do you mean by that, General Shepard?" questions Mactavish. Hm, so this is the man who created the task force. Why do I have a feeling I'm going to hate him in the future?

Shepard coughs, "I sent Private Allens, an American, to go undercover and gain the terrorist Vladimir Makarov's trust. But as you have heard, it didn't turn out so well. Now all of Russia is calling for war." He states. Just then, my phone vibrates in front of Meat. He looks at it questionably then up at me.

"Hey you got a text Erin!" he said out right, not taking in consideration the General sitting at the head of the table who seems to not notice the outburst.

"Meat, give me back my phone!" I hiss under my breath, not wanting to interrupt Shepard's spiel.

Meat sends me a fake look of hurt. "But I wanna read it!" he mopes childishly.

I grit my teeth, _OO ooh he really knows how to piss me off. _"Meat give me back my phone or I swear to god-!" I hiss. Shepard looks at me, confused at my presence.

"Excuse me, but who are you? I don't remember recruiting you for the task force." He said out right. I look over at him, throwing back a look of confusion. Then I look over at Mactavish who sits on the other head of the table.

"Um, well I-" I fumble, trying to sort out what I'm suppose to tell him.

Luckily, Mactavish comes to my rescue. "We recruited her a couple months back. Her name is Sergent Erin Nirent of Chicago, Illinois." Mactavish adds quickly. I give him a nod, thanking him silently.

Shepard nods. "Ah, interesting. Always a good sign to see a female paving the way into the military." He said briefly. I sense a bit of resentment in his voice but I don't think twice of it. I see Meat, out of the corner of my eye, trying to figure out how to unlock the screen lock to read the text.

Shifting my attention to him, I fold my arms. "Didn't I say give me my phone back?" I grumble.

Meat is resilient, still wanting to read the text. Like it's some sort of big thing, I mean I don't have a boyfriend and my friends usually text me stupid stuff so it's not like some sort of secret thing. But just in case it was, I sure as hell didn't want Meat reading it and taunting me about it. "Oh Please can I just read it!"" he pleads, failing at doing the goggly eyes. I mean, come on! Everyone knows that only works if us girls do it!

I stand firm, not being shaken by his constant pleading. "Don't make me come over there because I will! Hell, I'll climb over the table! Now give me my damn phone!" I said sharply.

Meat finally utters defeat, "Aw, Fine." He said, sliding my phone over to me. I swipe it from the table as soon as it comes to a stop in front of me. Shepard has continued talking, Mactavish and Ghost adding to the conversation once in a while. All the while, I slyly check my texts. It's from my friend Moli. For the record, she's the one who made the awesome hot cocoa that SOMEONE stole the last bit of! Sorry, just had to put that out there.

"OMG! Did u hear da news?" she texts. I text her back ninja style without anyone noticing while Shepard continues debriefing everyone on the situation in Russia.

"Yeah, American terrorists attacked some Russian airport." I text back.

The next text steals my breath away, "Not that! D.C. is under attack! The fighting is getting close to IL. Erin…I'm scared!" she texts, her fears coming through the text full force.

America was under attack…my friends were now in the battle field, unprotected. It isn't supposed to be this way; I'm supposed to be the one in danger! Not people back home in the states. This is all messed up; America hasn't seen a war on their soil since the civil war. I want to cry for my friends, feeling like I can't do anything while they're going through the hell they haven't been prepared for like I have. But I maintain my composure, not wanting to cause attention to be brought to me after my recent outburst with Meat. "Don't worry; we'll get the bastard's before they can even smell IL air!" I text her confidently.

"Thanks Erin….that makes me feel better. You be careful where ever you are, Erin." She texts me.

I nod stupidly as if I'm talking to her face to face, "Yeah, back at you. Stay frosty and cut the chatter." I said.

"No! Its cold enough here, I don't wanna stay frosty! I wanna stay warm!" she texts childishly, "But yeah, I'll shut up so you can do your thing. Peace out."

I slip my phone into my pocket, joining the conversation entirely now. Shepard has finished briefing them on the airport attack and the sudden attack on the US.

"Follow the shells; it'll lead you to Makarov's gun dealer who will most likely lead you to Makarov himself." Shepard concludes. With that, Shepard leaves us with a salute. Mactavish stands up, a serious look on his face.

"Alright, we're going after the arm's dealer who sold Makarov his weapons. The ground team is as followed: Ghost, Roach Meat, Royce and I. Archer, you and Erin will stay here and gather Intel about this guy. Like allies and places of business. Alright, we shove off in two hours. Don't be late." He ends. Everyone files out of the room, that's when Mactavish stops me. "May I speak with you?" he asks. I gulp, nodding as I stare up him. The captain has some scars on his face and I've always wondered why, but I really don't think now is an appropriate time to ask. "What was up back there, with the text?" he asks right off the bat.

I gulp, afraid he'd ask that. "Well, sir, it was a text from one my people back home. They gave me some Intel about the attacks on the US. Basically the same stuff Shepard went over." I said flatly.

Mactavish nods sternly, "Well don't let texts from 'your people' get you off task. You have a mission to do, don't let your emotions get the best of you." He said. I nod. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Crystal, Sir." I said, ridged. There's a pause in between the two of us before we both burst out laughing. "Oh wow, I can't believe you just did that!" I laughed, mostly at going old school with the last order.

Mactavish grins as we walk out the door, "Hey what can I say, I'm old school! But seriously….what do you mean by you people?" he said questionably.

I wiggle my eye brows, "What do _**you**_ mean, you people?" I ask, bursting with laughter as I quoted a Ben Stiller movie.

Mactavish smiles, "Atta girl, keep things light!" he said before we parted ways. I enter the rec room and join Meat, Archer and Roach who are playing a hearty game of poker. Since I'm sitting my Roach, I steal peeks at his hand and give Meat and Archer signs of what he has. In the end, Archer wins the pot and everything seems OK.

That is, until the mission started.


	7. A secret for a secret

Soon after the ground team is deployed, Archer and I set to work on gathering Intel about this Alejandro Rojas guy, also known as Alex the red when you translate his name into English. Archer takes out a lap top, tapping into the database. "Alright, I'll look for intel on this guy through the data base. What about you?" asks Archer as his fingers zip across the keyboard, popping up files.

"I guess I'll look through the hard files." I said, walking out of the room. The file room isn't in our section of the base, but more near the middle where anyone with the proper clearance can gather Intel on all our enemies or all of our soldiers in the one-four-one. The base is pretty quiet, I guess since most of the others were sent to aid the war effort back in the states. From my understanding, I'm the only female in this whole task force. I furrow my brow, wondering when we flashed back to fifties when women simply sat at home while the men fought out in the front lines. The talk Ghost had with me in the kitchen resurfaces, I shake it from my head_. I have a job to do, I can let my mind be clouded by stuff like that! _When entering the file room, I discover it to be empty. It's a small room, with a table, a chair, one lamp, an overhead light and 7 or so file cabinets pushed together with 3 shelves each. Immediately, I set to work, looking through the R's. My fingers run across the name tabs on the files until it stops on Rojas, Alejandro. I pick it up and my heart sinks. There's not much to it, there's only one page of basic information. Hell, it can't even be considered a file! It's just a simple file divider. Discouraged, I slip it back in place and slam the shelf close. I'm about to leave when an idea hits me. I go to the M file cabinet. The mission was to interrogate Rojas, to find out Intel about Makarov. Well, why not just see what connections can be made through looking at Makarov's file? My eyes dart across the names on the file tabs and happiness bubbles in me when I see Makarov's name on a fat file. I take it and flip it open. The picture paper clipped to the file is that of a man, about mid to late 40's, his hair is as black as a raven's and he's slightly unshaved. But his eyes are what get me, their blue and it feels like they're looking right at me. Strangely, I think of Resputin, the official creepers mascot. _Creepy. _I close the file and exit the room, almost colliding with a man.

"Oh Sorry, I didn't see you there-Hey, since when did the task force get a hotty?" he questions, of handily.

I blink, blushing slightly, "I don't know whether to thank you or slap you." I hiss, not appreciating a guy simply looking at looks. Really, I hated when guys did that.

He smiles, his green eyes not looking into mind, "Thank me, after all, you could stop a while incoming army with the way you look." He purrs.

I shift uncomfortably; this guy is starting to creep me out. That's when I remember about the mission. "I, uh, got to go. It was nice talking with you." I said, lying through my teeth. I go to walk around him but he blocks my path.

"Hey, come on! We're just talking….no harm in that. I just think, we should be doing more." He said, suggestively, taking a step towards me.

_WHOAWHOAWHOAWHOAWHOA! DANGER CLOSE, DANGER CLOSE! CREEPER ALEART!!! _I think to myself. _Well, I guess I'll just have to go ninja on him. _"Oh will you just-hey what's that over there?" I said, pointing a random direction. He takes the bait, looking the way I pointed. I take the chance and make it past him, thinking I've won. But I feel him grab my wrist.

"Oh, not so fast, where do you think your going?" he asks, still thinking I'm playing his game.

I glower at him, too pissed off to actually say anything. This guy…OOOH THIS GUY! He is SO getting it! I roundhouse kick him sharply in the chin, causing him to release me. He falls on to his back, obviously seeing stars. I regain my balance and look at him, sharing a hard look of indifference towards him. "Don't you DARE come near me, you hear?! Because I swear, I won't be so passive next time!" I scorn, turning heel and continuing on my way. _I think that went well_.

I walk into the rec room where Archer and I have made into our base of operations for this mission. Archer sits, still typing away on this computer. The radio is tuned to the team's channel and so far there doesn't seem to be much chatter.

Archer sighs, putting the computer on the table and rubbing his eyes. "Well, I found out where Rojas assistant general vicinity is…that's a start. The team is following some sort of militia to find the assistant so they can find Rojas. Wow….all just to find one-Jesus Christ, are you OK?!" Archer said concern heavy in his voice. From his sudden change in mood, I'm guessing I look pretty shaken. The confrontation with that guy left me pretty unnerved. But I don't want Archer to know.

I smile sheepishly, "Uh, yeah! I just….saw a spider! Yeah, a spider! Like one of those freaking camel spiders! Duuude, those are freaky!" I said, lying through my teeth, "Oh, and I think I might have saw a tarantula creeping around."

Archer narrows his eyes, "Bisnich, please! I know your lying. There's no such thing as a desert camel spider in freaking Kazakhstan. Same goes with tarantulas. Now, tell me the truth. What happened." He said, calling my bluff. I sigh, knowing there's no way around it. Collapsing on the couch, I end up telling Archer the whole story. Archer nods considerately, anger flaring behind his calm blue eyes.

I choke back tears, "It's just…horrible! Archer, please promise me you won't tell the guys." I said, looking at my feet dejectedly.

Archer is taken about by this but nods, "Yeah, don't worry…a secret for a secret, eh?" he said, pulling me into a comforting hug.

I nod, pulling out of the hug and rubbing my nose, "Mm. Oh, I didn't find much on Rojas either…but I did pull Makarov's file." I said outright, changing subjects.

A smile crosses Archer's face, "Well, that's the next best thing." He chimes.

I nod, the traumatic events fading away.

A couple minutes later, after going through the file, Archer clicks into the radio chatter. "Mactavish, come in. Do you read me?" he asks.

"Loud and clear, Archer. Any new intel?" ask Mactavish over the radio.

Archer sighs, "We couldn't find much information on Rojas that we don't already know, sir. But from Makarov's file, we did pull some interesting puzzle pieces. Seems most of the attacks his done have been focused on prisons in Russia. There was nothing in the find that said why, though." Archers answers, dismally.

"Well we're currently interrogating Rojas's assistant right now, so I'll keep that in mind. Mactavish, out." Mactavish finishes.

I stare at the file, trying to piece things together. But that one piece, that one damn piece that when brought to light, can show the whole thing in its entirety, was not here. A commotion comes over the radio, causing both Archer and myself to turn our attention to it.

"Enemy militia! Watch the roof tops!" Ghost screams in his British accent. There's sound of grenade blasts, gun fire and yelling in two different languages. Someone swears loudly and is suddenly cut off with the sound of a gun shot.

"Meat is down!" Royce shouts over the radio, before a bullets hits him, "Ugh, Roach I'm hit!"

The conversation hits Archer and me as we stare in utter horror at the radio that reported death of our two team mates in full detail. Archer is hit harder with the news than I am because of the lost of Meat. Whether it was because Archer felt something for him, I don't know. But nevertheless, I try and console him about it. But he simply shakes his head and exits the room, leaving me alone. Memories flood my mind; from the countless poker games (including the latest and sadly last one with Meat) to the comical fight over the return of my phone in the briefing room. I wasn't necessarily close to Meat but we were still friends, sharing a couple laughs over Roach and his FNG behavior. And now, he was gone, no more laughs, him swearing some one cheated in poker or just his cocky attitude. For Royce, I can't really say I knew him that well. He was pretty quiet and laid back, a good guy. I let out a sigh, it felt weird how they had just been alive and well just a couple hours before being deployed and now their gone.

"Archer, Archer do you read me?" Mactavish bursts onto the radio.

I jump slightly and look towards the door, waiting for Archer to dart in and answer the radio. When he doesn't, that's when I decide I have to jump in. "Archer stepped out for a minute, what you need?" I answer quickly.

"Erin?" asks the captain, confusion evident in his Scottish accent.

"Mmm, sí senor." I answer, speaking Spanish.

"We need you to look up information on the gulag and report back as soon as possible, savvy?" he orders.

I nod, typing _Gulag _into the database search engine. It takes me to a profile with a picture of a castle like building. "Well, it was a castle that could withstand any siege. But the occupants weren't so lucky. It's been reinnervated into a high maximum prison where the Russian government puts the people they hate but can't kill-hey, wait a minute. Do you think this may have a connection to Makarov and his relentless sieges on multiple prisons across Russia?" I said, the piece of info I've been waiting for slowly coming into focus.

"I believe so. From Rojas's assistant, all we got was the name gulag. Great job piecing it together." Mactavish said, praising me.

I sit back, a smirk placed on my face, "Oh what can I say? I'm a whiz at puzzles. I'll run a cross examination for every known prisoner to see if I can find any connections with Makarov." I said, not letting his comment go to my head.

"Alright, let us know what you find." He said. With that, I cross reference every prisoner in the gulag to Makarov. Eventually, it comes up with the name prisoner 626. I scowl, _what, no name? Ugh, I guess that's as good as I'm going get. _I'm about to click into the conversation when commotion bursts from the radio. "Quick! Jump across the roof tops!" he screams over the radio.

"From up here, it looks like 'tire village is trying to kill you!" comments a man with a heavy Russian accent, who is most likely their ride out of that hell hole.

I hear Mactavish growl. "Tell me something I don't know!"

"We're running out of roof top!" Warns Ghost.

Suddenly, Mactavish yells, "Roach! Roach is down, I repeat, Roach is down!" Mactavish warns, "Roach, wake up! The militia is closing in on your position! Get the hell out of there and make your way to the roof!" I breathe shallowly, praying Roach doesn't get killed. On a side note, completely random, I'll remember to cross off Brazil as a place to visit for a vacation. "Jump Roach!" shouts Mactavish and my heart stops until I hear an audible sigh come from Mactavish, "We got him…Nikolai take us home." I rest my head on the back of the coach, happy to hear we didn't loose anyone else.

"Erin?" buzzes Mactavish after a couple minutes of silence. I glance over to the radio, a perplexed look on my face.

I click in, "Here." Answering back shortly.

"Thanks." He said bluntly. I blink, his one word response confusing me

"Um, I'm sorry, I don't understand." I question.

"Thanks for the information on the gulag….and for stepping in when Archer….you know." Mactavish said, beating around the bush. The bush where Archer's one secret is hidden and I act like I know nothing.

"Well your welcome for the information. Archer's probably sad he couldn't be the one to make the connections but when you gotta step out, you gotta step out-" I said, laughing nervously.

"Save it, I know he's gay Erin." He said flatly. I stare at the radio, stunned that Mactavish figured it out.

I sigh, knowing there's no way around it but I still try to dance around it. "Sir, I don't think its right to make such accusations.." I mutter defeated.

"Well you should know no one else is on this channel, Erin." He answers.

"Then I guess you can already gather why Archer had to leave the room. See, hearing someone you care about voice one minute and the next nothing, is really gut wrenching." I admit, my thoughts going to how it would feel for that to happen.

There's silence on Mactavish's end of the line before he speaks. "Yeah….I know how he feels." He mutters. I scowl, wondering if Mactavish is just saying that or really knows it.

"Um, permission to speak frankly sir?" I ask timidly.

"Erin, speak freely when ever you feel it's necessary to speak freely." Mactavish comments.

"Do the other guys know?" I ask, fearing the answer.

There's a pause. "No, they don't know." He said simply.

"Well are you going to tell them and Shepard?" I said flatly, not to keen that Mactavish added himself to the small list of people who know of Archer's sexuality.

"Now why would I do that?" he said, a smiling coming through in his voice.

I blink, before a soft smile appears on my face. "Thanks Mactavish. You're a pretty cool guy." I said, knowing Archer's secret is well kept.

"Oh, so I wasn't a cool guy before?" he said, chuckling.


	8. Love fails everyoneexcept for the scot

Author's note: I know I messed up the time sequence for when the war with Russia started two chapters ago and I'm sorry about that. Oh and yes, last chapter I did say the base was in Kazakhstan. I know that probably doesn't make sense but, I just came up with a random place for it. This is also a long chapter, just letting you know! So, without further explanation, please enjoy this chapter of A_ Fine Line! _

As the clock ticked away, giving way to four hours later. The rest of the team shuffles in. The air is heavy as everyone feels the same after losing two of our people. I vanish into the kitchen, muttering a greeting to the exhausted men. I idly flip the pages in a cook book, not really in the mood to cook. In the end, I decide to go with frozen pizza. Preheating the oven, I set to work on the salad. I take a bag of pre shredded lettuce, washing it through the strainer. I lean on the edge of the counter as the previous events of the day hit me like a semi. Letting out an irritated sigh, I slap the water off and shake the excess water off of the lettuce. Going to find a bowl for the lettuce, I turn and Ghost is standing there in a grey hoodie and jeans, having already cleaned up from the mission already. I jump slightly.

"Curse you and your ninja ness!" I mumble haft heatedly. He leans against the counter, quiet filling the void. He's not wearing his mask, which he tries to hide behind most of the time for some stupid reason. I really don't see why he does; he's got nothing to hide. Sure he's got some scars but so does Mactavish. Ah well, I've learned some stories are bested left untold. I've finished with the salad just at the oven finishes preheating. After slipping the pizza in and setting the timer, I get some bowls down for the salad. Unconsciously, I grabbed two extra bowls. Ghost notices this.

"Um, you got two extra bowls down Erin..." he said quietly, pointing out my fault. I blink, seeing my mistake.

"Oh, my bad. I wasn't really thinking." I mumble, slipping the two bowls back into the cupboard. Ghost walks over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. I jump back as if slapped, flashbacks of my confrontation with that guy in the hall hitting me.

Ghost looks at me, concern in his facial features, "Erin, what's the matter?!" he asks.

I hug my self, sniffling. Choking back tears, "N-nothing! It's nothing!" I said dejectedly, looking away from him.

He narrows his eyes, "Sure doesn't seem like nothing." He said flatly, "Erin, come on! You know you can tell me anything." I bite my lip, hating how he always knows when something is up. I brush the hair from my eyes, as tears escape them. Ultimately, I end up telling him everything that happened. Near the end, I can't help myself, I break down. Tears roll down my face and refuse to stop. Ghost pulls me into a hug, calming me down. I shouldn't have broken down like that; it broke everything I stood for. But everything that happened today was just too much for me to keep bottled up. My tears finally subside and I rub their trails from my face. Ghost hands me a tissue which I take, graciously and honk noisily. "Better?" he asks. I nod silently. "Now, where's the bastard so I can kick his ass." He growls, cracking his knuckles.

I shake my head, examining my shoes. "I-I don't know….he didn't tell me his name." I said, my voice shaking as tears fall from my eyes again. Ghost wipes them away, causing me to look up at him.

"Hey, don't cry. When I find this guy, I'll send him a clear message: if he messes with you, he's got to deal with me." He answers confidently, pointing at himself.

A smile finally makes it through all the sadness on my face. "Thanks Ghost, that means a hell uva lot to me." I chime.

After dinner, I find myself washing dishes with Roach and Mactavish. Roach is washing them, I'm drying and Mactavish is trying fruitlessly to put the dishes in their respective spots in the cupboards.

Roach is scrapping at a plate, not too happy with this task. "Why can't we use the dish washer?!" he grumbles, letting the plate clatter into the drying wrack.

Before I can answer with the facts, Mactavish looks over at Roach. "Quit your belly aching Roach! It makes you miss spots." he mutters, slapping a plate with multiple dirty spots on it into the sink, causing soap to fly up and hit Roach. He gawks and shoots the captain a dirty look. Mactavish sees it and frowns. "What's with the face? Is that anyway to look at your captain." He growls.

Roach goes back to his duty. "No, _sir._" Mumbles Roach, like a smart alack. Mactavish slams a cup down, just about ready to do something.

"Oh, hey, how 'bout that weather?" I jump in, changing the subject. They both mutter something under their breath before continuing with their jobs. I sigh, _wow these guys are hard to talk to when their pissed. Wonder how their girlfriends deal with them-_ That's when I come up with the perfect subject to talk about. "So, Roach….did you do the dishes for your girl friend before coming here?" I inquire.

Roach gazes into the soapy water, as if he was looking into the future. "No….she usually did them." He mumbles, still staring at the soapy water.

I blink, tilting my head to the side, "Really? Hmph, I wonder how she deals with you-" I start, not really thinking.

"She slept with my best friend, the day right before I was deployed." Roach ends, gripping the wash towel so tight his knuckles turn white.

I pause, taking in with what he said. Working on drying a plate, a haft smile plays on my lips. "Hey, I know how you feel. My boyfriend did the same thing, except it was with some hoe. By in by, I guess it was for the best….it showed me what an ass he was." I mumble. Roach looks at the water, dejectedly. There's another silence as the three of us continue. I look over at Mactavish, "So, Mactavish, what about you?" I ask, interested in hearing his story. Oooo, maybe it includes why he has the scars on his face.

Mactavish huffs and scratches the back of his head, "Well, unlike you two, my story actually isn't sad. I still have my girl, Cynthia. And even when I told her how dangerous this job was, she still wouldn't stop loving me." He said bluntly. Roach and I glare at him childishly. "What?" he asks confused at our sudden death glares.

"We're jealous." Roach and I say in unison and then look at each other, slightly weirded out.

Mactavish smiles, placing the last dish in its place, "Heh, I'm just good like that." He mutters as he hangs the drying towel off one of the cupboard handles. With that, we part ways. On my way out, I bump into Ghost who pulls me into the briefing room.

On the table are files on everyone on the base, their pictures sitting on top. "I got everyone's file. Point to the guy who harassed you." Ghost said calmly, "Look, I know this may be difficult but-"

Without delay, I point to the picture of the guy. He's in his late 30's early 40's and his hair is chocolate brown. His picture portrays a stoic man but his actions showed a complete opposite side of him. "That's him…" I mumble, shaking slightly.

Ghost picks up the photo and the file it goes with. "Hmm…Private Adam Dorales. From his file, it sounds like he's gotten a lot of complains from people saying he's a slacker with an attitude problem. Oh I'm going to have fun kicking his ass!" he said cunningly, once again his mask hiding his sly smile I know he has on his face. He grabs the tall stack of files and starts out the room or more on course to run into the wall.

I stop him, "Um, would you like some help?" I offer, the stack tilting dangerously like the leaning tower of piazza.

"Help would be nice." He said simply as I take haft of the pile. We start down to the file room. I walk in first and stop short. Sitting at the table is Dorales. I look down and shuffle into the room, hoping he won't notice. Sadly, my luck fails me for he looks up and we meet eyes. A wide grin engulfs his face.

"Hey sexy! Haven't seen you in a while, finally come to your senses? Because I'm game, let's go right here and now-" he said suggestively.

"Alright then." Ghost said casually; bring Dorales's attention to him. Before Dorales can counter block, Ghost's fist makes contact with Dorales's face. The two start duking it out and I have to admit, it's pretty epic. Suddenly, it looks like Ghost is loosing. I'm about to jump in when someone pushes me back. Stumbling back, I hit a file cabinet, the corner jabbing me sharply in the back. That's when I see the knife Dorales has pulled. I let out a yelp, fearing for Ghost. Ghost dodges his first initial attack but Dorales plays dirty, throwing a file at Ghost. This blinds him for a second, long enough for Dorales to slash Ghost's side. I hear Ghost let out a grunt of pain, clutching his side in pain as blood oozes from the cut and he falls back. Dorales is relentless, going after Ghost when he's trying to regain his balance. It's then that I spring into action. I pounce on Dorales's back, wrapping my arms around his neck. He chokes, stumbling around with me on his back. He tries prying me from my tight grip I have on him but I'm not budging. It's then he uses his knife and slashes my arm. I grimace, but still refuse to let up until he runs backwards into the file cabinets. I take the hit like an air bag, hard. My arms slip from his neck as I slide off his back. I hold myself up with the file cabinets, my back throbbing in pain as I breathe heavily. Dorales looks down at me, fake concern smeared on his face.

"Aw, now look what you made me do." He moped, sarcasm dripping in every word.

I smirk, knowing something he didn't. "This isn't nearly as bad as what you're going to look like." I comment. Before Dorales can say another word, Ghost has the cord from the lamp around his neck. After agonizing seconds of Dorales flailing, he finally looses consciousness. Ghost lets him drop and I breathe a sigh of relief. I stand up with aid from the cabinets and walk over to Dorales's limp body. Just to be safe, I kick his knife away from his gasp. Ghost keels over but I catch him. "Hey…you OK?" I ask, worry present in my face.

Ghost smiles, "Oh I've seen worst. How 'bout yourself?" he inquires. I smile, rolling my eyes.

"Oh yeah, I'll probably be sore in the morning but I'll live." I said, smiling. I help Ghost over to the infirmary. Archer walks out, blood shot eyes. He's still hurting from Meat's death, poor kid.

"Dude, what the hell happened to you guys?" he said haft heatedly, motioning to our wounds as I help Ghost over to one of the beds.

Archer brings out a first aid kit, still intent on hearing what happened. "Oh, well it was just a fight. Some guy pulled a knife and that's how this happened." Ghost states casually like he was talking about the weather. He takes off his hoodie and t-shirt, the cut bleeding slightly. Archer pats the blood away with a cloth soaked with disinfectant. Ghost tenses up, the alcohol in the substance burning the cut. I wince my self, remembering when I had that stuff put on my leg wound. _Oh did it hurt like a bitch!_ Archer finishes cleaning the wound, taking out the stitching needle. I look away; the sight of the thing grossed me out enough without it being pulled through flesh.

"Alright Erin, you can look." Archer laughs, happiness returning to his once sulked face. I look over and let out a sigh of relief as the needle had been disposed of after full filling its purpose. Archer has finished wrapping Ghost's wound and looks at me. "So, what about yourself?" he asks.

I hold up my arm, showing the shallow cut delivered by Dorales oozes only slightly. "If you consider this an injury." I say bluntly, a smile creeping on my face. Archer smiles, the first since Meat's death. He takes a clean piece of gauze and pats the blood away, wrapping it up tight.

"Hey how's your leg wound?" Archer asks suddenly, catching me off guard. I had almost forgotten about it and I look down toward it.

"Well, it's stopped hurting." I state, taking out the pill bottle, "So I don't think I'm going to need these anymore." There are about 10 pills left and I hand them over to Archer. I shift, pain shooting through my back.

Archer gives me a 'oh really' look. "Mmhm…and you aren't hurting…" he said, handing me back the pill container, "Keep 'em. You look like you still need them"

I nod silently, "Well, if I get addicted to these…slap me, will ya?" I laugh, placing the bottle into one of my many pockets of my cargo pants. With that, Ghost and I walk out into the hall, it's a quiet walk. Coughing, I decide to break the silence. "Ghost, I'm sorry for dragging you into this." I murmur, dolefully examining my shoes.

Ghost stops and looks at me, an eyebrow raised as the only sign of confusion behind his skull mask. "Last time I checked, it was me who wanted to beat that guy up. _You_ didn't suggest it." He points out.

I shift the weight on my feet. "Yeah, but I still feel terrible that you got hurt." I said, feeling terrible for his wound.

Ghost rolls his eyes, a smile crease showing on his mask. "Oh what, this?" he asks, pointing at the slash wound delivered by Dorales, "This is just a flesh wound." He laughs. I can't help but smile, remembering myself saying the same exact thing after he commented on my leg wound. He pats me on the head. "But seriously, don't think so much about it. I'm OK, Dorales knows better and it's a Friday. In the end, everything worked out." He said optimistically.

Mactavish appears out of no where, "You two, briefing room ASAP." He growls. Ghost and I both share an 'Oh Crap' look as we follow our Captain. _Wow, guess everything didn't work out. Maybe, maybe it's just a mission!_

"Hey Mactavish-" I start, intending to ask what was up.

"That's Captain Mactavish to you." He cuts me off sharply.

_Oh, yep. We're sooo in trouble._


	9. Trial and Error

Mactavish leads us into the briefing room and I'm not surprised to see Dorales sitting on one side with a bald headed man that is most likely his superior. The only thing that surprises me is Shepard sitting at the head of the table with a hard look of apathy. I take a seat on the unoccupied side in between Ghost and Mactavish, remembering how just the day before Meat had been sitting across from me. Now Dorales occupies his spot with a sly smile plastered on his face as if he was the king of the world. _The nerve of that scrawny little-_

But before I can finish that thought, Shepard starts. "Well you three look like a bloody mess." He growls, shaking his head, "At this time of grave peril, we should be uniting…_**NOT**_ beating each others brains out! Now, what do you have to say for your selves?!" He canvases both sides of the table, waiting for someone to speak.

I'm about to start in with my story, but Dorales jumps in. "They attacked me randomly, sir-" he states, innocently.

But I jump up, slamming my hands on the table. "That's a lie!" I scream, then catch myself before I start going off on him, considering Shepard's here, "I'm sorry, sir. But no way am I going to sit by while he spits _lies _in our faces!" Dorales keeps eye contact with me; a frown sits hard on his lips.

Shepard nods, considering this. "True, but I don't think a yelling match is going to solve things. I'll give each side a chance to plead their side of the story." He said, level headily, "Ladies go first, if I'm not mistaking." I smile as I take a seat, knowing I've gotten the upper hand.

"Thank you, General." I acknowledged as I start from the top and came down to the part where I encountered Dorales before I was interrupted.

"But where does this 'Ghost' guy come in?" Baldy asks, folding his arms as he stared me down with his green eyes.

Shepard looks over at him, narrowing his eyes, "Captain Baltmore, I'm pretty sure I made it clear that each side would have time to plead their case uninterrupted. Now, go on Sergent." He omitted.

I nod appreciatively and finish retelling what happened between Dorales me. "Then…Ghost got involved after he kept prying me because he knew something was wrong. Because he's nosy." I point out nonchalantly.

Ghost nods, "I got irritated, hearing what happened. See, Erin's like a sister to me and hearing she got hurt, I immediately got involved." He informs, looking at Shepard.

"And then you went to find Dorales to send him a message." Shepard ends his tone accusing.

I gulp; knowing that Ghost better choose his words carefully because they can either set him free or damn him-and me. Ghost doesn't seem shaken by this. "More like, we met haft-way." He replies shortly.

Shepard takes this in, nodding. "Alright, now Dorales it's your turn." He breathes, obviously not too happy to have to listen to this.

Dorales clears his throat, smiling the same sly smile he had on when I first walked in. "Thank you. So it all started when I saw that gorgeous piece ass! I couldn't help myself, I acted stupidly. I made inappropriate comment and…..I thought things I shouldn't have. I am truly sorry if what I said offended you." He drawls with fake reconciliation, obviously coming up with this speech before the meeting started.

Everyone looks at me, obviously waiting to see how I react to this shallow apology. I sigh, folding my arms and looking at Dorales sharply. "That still doesn't excuse yo from pulling a knife in a fist fight. That breaks the rule of chivalry and 'sorry' can't amend that happening." I say darkly.

Baltmore balks at Dorales, letting the piece of information sink in. "You pulled a knife?!" he exclaims, trying to come to terms to this.

Dorales shifts uncomfortably, feeling all our eyes on him. "Yeah… b-but he, that Ghost guy, attacked me! I had to defend myself." He stutters, not knowing his excuses are accusing him even more.

"You defended yourself by being a coward and hiding behind a knife." Growls Mactavish as he finally adds something to the conversation.

I nod, agreeing with Mactavish. "From there, you proceeded to attack Ghost. In fact, you were able to inflict a shallow cut into his side. That's when I jumped in to help by jumping on Dorales's back to divert his attacks. This ended up with him slicing my arm and ramming me back into a file cabinet." I state, wincing at the last part.

Shepard shakes his head; a look of indifference sits on his rough face. "Dorales, you have been a thorn in my side for too long. I-" he starts, intending to tell Dorales what he's punishment is.

"Wait! They neglected to add the last part of the attack!" races Dorales, trying to get them to see he is innocent through all the facts that state other wise.

Shepard sighs irately, rolling his eyes. "Make it fast, I got other things to do today." He remarks impatiently.

Dorales nods, "That Ghost guy wrapped a cord around my neck, suffocating me till I fell unconscious." He said pleased with the information he set on the table in his favor.

Shepard looks over at Ghost, "Is this true?" he asks shortly, just wanting to end this whole damn charade.

Ghost rubs the back of his head, contemplating his answer. Before he can answer, I jump in. "He only did that because he felt my life was in danger. Don't forget, Dorales had a knife and obviously wasn't afraid to use it." I reply, pointing out the facts.

Shepard nods, "Alright. Now that I've heard both sides, I've made my decision. You two, Lt. Riley and Srg. Nirent, are off the hook. Private Dorales, however, you are put on tower duty for 10 months. Also, you are not allowed within 50 feet of Nirent. Do I make myself clear?" he barks.

When we all thunder back that we understand he dismisses us accordingly. He disappears into the hall and we all pour out to go our separate ways. Baltmore catches Mactavish by the door, obviously not pleased that things didn't work in his favor.

"The only reason your soldiers got away with this is because your Shepard's prima donna squad." Growls Baltmore, refusing to let this whole thing just die.

Mactavish straightens up, clearly sizing him up. I stifle a laugh as I realize Baltmore is at least a foot shorter than the scot and yet he seems to be talking down to him. "The only reason they 'got away with this' is because they told the truth…not some lie to make themselves look good!" he gruffs, shooting him a look before he brush pass him. Ghost and I follow suit and when we're out of ear shot, we finally speak.

"Captain…? Sorry for all that." I mutter, looking down at the floor as we walk.

Mactavish looks at me, confused at my sudden apology. "Erin…it's Mactavish and don't you forget." He replies curtly.

I blink, looking back him, "But you told me-" I start.

"Hey, I only told you that so Shepard won't go into this huge debate about how calling your superior's by rank is respectful and blah blah." He states, a smile on his face.

I agree in a small voice, rolling the idea in my head.

"Anyway, we have a mission to do and Erin, your apart of the ground team, you too Ghost." Mactavish informs us.

I stop and look at him, letting this sink in before a smile appears on my face. "Hoorah!" I exclaim animatedly, not realizing I my fault.

Ghost does though, "That's the ranger's thing, Erin." He states, a smile coming through in his voice.

"Oh, then yay!" I say, not letting my slip up change my mood.


	10. Keep your head in the game

Author's note: I am extremely sorry for not having updated in so long (a week, about). Last week was REALLY hectic for me. Someone commented, I don't remember who, said they would have liked Mactavish's girlfriend to have been described more. Well, merry Christmas! He actually describes her, and it's not just completely random...OK, maybe a little random. Oh, and I _may _have messed up on the gun names so I apologize in advance. (Hell, I don't even think there is such as a silenced pistol but whatever! Erin's just awesome and gets one) so, without further pointless ranting, please enjoy this chapter!

The next day, I'm on a submarine, suiting up in a wet suit and oxygen mask completed with tank. The rest of the team has done the same, waiting till the actual moment we're in the water to place their masks on. Mactavish is staring at a photo reflectively, most likely of his girl Cynthia. Someone, though, is stupid enough to actually ask what the picture is of. _Piece it together, idiot, it's not that hard._

"It's of my lass, Cynthia Marcello. She's the most gorgeous girl in the entire world. Her golden locks radiate like sun rays and her blue eyes are as deep as the ocean and-" he rants on lovingly.

"SHUT UP MACTAVISH!" everyone yells in unison, not the less bit interested in hearing him drone on about his girlfriend.

Mactavish shrugs, placing the photo back into his pocket. "Hey, you asked." He replies defensively.

I roll my eyes, "I'm pretty sure they just asked who the photo was of; not for you to go into intimate detail about her!" I said, placing my hands on my hips.

A creepy smile crosses across Mactavish's face that worries me and the rest of the team. "Oh I didn't even get to the best part! When we make lo-" he starts.

Jumping back, I wave my hands in front of me, "Whoa! Don't you DARE finish that sentence!! We honestly DON'T need, or want to know about your bedroom stories!" I retort, voicing everyone's opinion.

He's about to make a comment, but we receive information that we're close to the oil rigs. That's when we go to our mini submarines and set off.

A couple minutes later

I watch as Roach and Mactavish take out two guards swiftly. With that, the rest of the team pulls themselves out of the icy water. I hop up, struggling to get on deck till Roach extends a hand. I take it generously, thanking him once he's yanked me out of the water. Like the rest of the team, I shed my wet suit and tank. I pull my hair into a short ponytail and clip the silencer on my M4A1 carbine. With that, the team moved up the stairs with little radio chatter. I ended up in the back, watching our backs.

Mactavish made up the front with Roach, "Alright people keep it tight and advance to the upper decks. Remember, there are hostages so don't shoot them." He warns. The sounds of the team's footsteps on the stairs remain light but they still cause a quiet metal sound as we follow the Scotsman into a room. Taking cover behind a gated in oil tank, I see a guard taking a smoke. Mactavish mutters something to Roach and the next thing I know, the poor unsuspecting guy gets shot in the head and tumbles into the cold, unforgiving waters below. We all surround the room, splitting into two groups to take the two doors. I take the far door with Roach and Mactavish just as Roach was placing the door charge. Once it blows the door in, everything turns slow motion. I slide in on my knees, aiming specifically and shoot the captors. One has grabbed a hostage, intending to us him as a human shield but I shoot the guard right between the eyes. Then I switch to my silenced pistol as a guy comes up on my right, causing him to fly back in a hail of bullets.

"Room clear, hostages secure! Great shooting, by the way Erin." Ghost commented, off handily. I jump up, switching back to my M4A1. A smile appears on my face as I look over at Ghost.

"Thank you very much. I mean, I learned from the best." I teased, clipping a fresh mag into my gun and starting to the door.

Ghost stifles a laugh, "Who, Texas Ranger?" he asked, following me.

I roll my eyes, fake surprise on my face. "Oh how did you know?" I remarked humorously. Following the team, we halt when the sound of rotor blades cutting the air catch our attention. We hug the wall and come upon the next room of hostages. I take the first door with Roach and some member of the SEALS whose name escapes me. Roach plants the charge and it starts all over again. The slow motion hits as the door blasts inward. I slide in on one knee, looking for my target. One guard has kicked a seated hostage over, intending to kill the innocent man. But I beat him to the draw, shooting the guard. It's like the slow motion suddenly switched back to regular speed and this surprise me. I hear an angry Russian yell from the right of me and a Russian runs out from behind a vending machine towards me, knife at the ready. I raise my gun, determined to shoot him but the sound of empty clicking in my guns tells me it has different plans. The Russian takes a swing at me with his knife, and I shut my eyes in expectation of the painful slice. When it fails to occur, I open my eyes to see the Russian lying in a pool of blood, staring blankly up at the ceiling as blood trickles out from the gun shoot wound to his head. My savior, standing a couple feet away, is Roach, gun smoking. Roach extends a hand to me and I take it, my mind still replaying how I cheated death by only a few inches. _I missed him…how the fuck did I miss him?!?! _

"That, was close…too close. Thanks, Roach. I owe you." I breathe, my heart pounding loudly in my chest.

Roach smiles sweetly, "We're on the same team, we have to look out for each other." He answers, patting me on the head. This causes me to smile, nodding in agreement.

"They'll be here soon." Comments Ghost, tapping into the enemy coms.

Mactavish nods seriously, "Roach, get some C4 on those bodies." Orders Mactavish. Roach obeys, quickly placing C4 on the dead bodies as team two leads the hostages out of the room. With that, we all scatter to watch the 'fireworks'. I chill with Roach and Mactavish who have chosen the working platform as the place to deliver the surprise for the Russian patrol team. An eerie silence comes over the radio as we wait. The patrol team finally comes into view, casting long shadows from where they stood. We watch, waiting as they enter the room. Once the chatter turns rash, Mactavish glowers at Roach.

"Now, Roach."

With that command, Roach unleashed the power of the C4 placed on the bodies. The explosion rips through the room, sending Russians everywhere. We return fire, exterminating to the small patrol. "Alright, they know we're here! Go to loud." Barks Mactavish as we jump down from our perch into the action. As we run pass some fallen Russians, my eyes catch the familiar shape of an Ak-47. I quickly exchange it with my silenced gun, stealing the rest of the dead Russian's ammo. I'm about to rejoin the group when a bullet hits the wall right by my head, deafening me for a minute. Taking cover behind an iron pillar, I peek around. A Russian has stepped out from his hiding place to see if he got his target. Without a moment's hesitation, I mow him down easily. I snake my way through until I finally meet up with the guys who are already heading off in different directions. My eyes don't spot Ghost so I decide to buddy up with Roach and Mactavish who are making their ways up a flight of stairs. _Hm, I'm pretty sure they've become my official buddies…for this mission at least. _Mactavish leads our small group with Roach and I race to be second. We enter a room and go towards some downward stairs. Bullets thud against the stairs and hit Mactavish, stunning him for a minute. Then, with agility I've never seen before, Roach already has his combat knife in the Russian's throat.

I blink as my mouth lies agape, glancing from where he had been standing to where he stood. "Holy hobo! That was fast!" I gasp, still trying to come to terms of how that happened.

Roach straightens up, taking his combat knife out of the guy's throat and putting it back in its holder. He smiles sheepishly up at us, "Not really, actually. I tripped. You OK cap-" starts Roach but Mactavish is already up and moving before Roach can finish his sentence. I follow his lead, joining Roach at the bottom of the stairs. Just then, a grenade rolls in. I quickly toss it away, the grenade exploding in mid air. Taking the far side of the opening, Roach and Mactavish take cover from the opposite side. I click the trigger, my gun suddenly jams. As I work to fix the jam, I see a Russian stand up with…AN RPG?!?! He shares a glance with me, a sick smile on his face before he fires it off in my direction. I dodge it just in time as it explodes against the wall, creating a small crater.

"OK, what the bloody hell?!?! Why are we shooting off RPGs and grenades…ON AN OIL RIG?!!" I shout, rolling onto my back. Just as I do, my gun gets un-jammed and I mow down the Russian who failed to kill me with the RPG. I let out a sigh of relief and pull myself up. By now, the rest of the team has joined us.

Roach is the only person who actually paid attention to my question, "Well, when you say it like that, it doesn't make sense. It sounded like a good idea at the time…" he mutters.

Ghost rolls his eyes, "Oh quit your complaining and let's just go get the last of the hostages." Adds Ghost, as we continue making our way upward. The sound of helicopter rotor blades catches our attentions.

"Enemy helio! Get some cover!" shouts Mactavish. I dash into a room and hug the wall, feeling the bullets from the heli strike the structure hard. After the initial attack, my ears pick up the sound of angry Russian coming from the opposite side of the room. I peek around the gated tank to see a group of Russians file into the room, intending to try and ambush us. What they fail to note is that they have to get through me. I toss a flash bang in their general direction, disorientating them for a minute. Jumping on this window of opportunity, I open fire at them. When the mag is done, I realize I only got two while the rest were smart enough to take cover. I jump back behind my cover, clipping a new mag into my gun. It's just then Roach runs in and straight into the line of fire, unknowingly. I grab the back of his shirt and pull him back behind cover just as a shower of bullets pepper the spot he would have been standing.

"Roach! What the hell?! Do you realize you could have been killed?!?" I scream in a more of a shocked voice than a pissed one.

He gulps, realizing how close he was to being picked off, "S-sorry….I didn't see them." He breathes.

I let out a breath, expelling the anger of myself, "Just be careful…" I said, then looking back at him with a smile on my face, "And we're even." Roach and I end up flanking the Russians; I distracted them while Roach shot at them from across the way. He mows down the remaining tengos as I deliver a killer slice to the last one. He rejoins me on my side, high five-ing me. "Go us and our awesome team work!" I whooped, feeling pleased with mine and Roach's planning.

Out of no where, Mactavish appears, "Great job you two." He comments, nodding approvingly.

I jump a little, "Holy crap, how'd you get there?!?!" I question, trying to calm my pounding heart.

"I never told you guys….but I'm a ninja." He replied light-heartily.

But of course I take him seriously, "Whoa, I sooo didn't see that coming." I gasp. We continue to the upper deck where the last room of hostages sits. But it's going to be hard since the Russians already know we're here and have thrown smoke grenades to mess us up. Mactavish, Roach and I take the left flanking route. By then, I switched to thermal and aim accordingly. It's then I see a guy aiming for Roach who is busy reloading. "ROACH LOOK OUT!" I cry, pulling him back just as a bullet whizzes past his head. I let out a sigh of relief as I see he's unharmed and Mactavish takes out the would-be assassin.

"Come on Roach, get your head in the game." Growls Mactavish as he continues shooting down Russians who are stupid enough to pop up and shoot at us.

I pout, slapping him lightly on the back of his head, "Yeah because I will start singing that high school musical song!" I hiss, joining Mactavish in killing the advancing Russians. Roach gulps, fearing my singing more than the Russians.

Once the area is cleared, we go to breach the door. Roach sets the charges and like the other times, the slow motion kicks in as soon as the door is down. Suddenly, I see something out of the corner of my eye. It's a Russian, cleverly hidden, running towards Roach with a combat knife, who is preoccupied with shooting the rest of the tengos in the room. I act fast, shooting him between the eyes. Roach is deafened for a second. The slow motion changes and Roach stumbles around a bit. He looks at me then the dead Russian and his face drops, draining of its color, as he realizes if I hadn't been there, the Russian would not have hesitated to end Roach's life. I blink, placing a hand on Roach's shoulder, "Roach? You OK?" I ask, concern sitting heavy on my face.

"How did I miss that…" he mumbles, having troubles accepting this. We follow the rest of the team, making our way to the helicopters. After a moment of silence, I finally sigh, "Look, Roach….that was the third time I saved your ass for this mission. You gotta remember to keep you head in the game, OK? But I won't hold this against you, since everyone has bad days where they're just completely out of it." I reply shortly. Roach nods, unable to come up with words to describe how he's feeling right now.

My radio crackles to life, a familiar voice coming from the other line. "Erin?" questions Shepard.

I blink then answer quickly, "Oh-yes, sir!"

"You're being pulled from the mission. You're needed at the base ASAP." Orders Shepard and I felt like he wasn't telling me something. I slow till I stop, Roach looking at me questioningly.

"And what are the reasons, sir?" I ask, nervousness dancing in the pit of my stomach.

"It's your friend Archer….seems he's gone suicidal." Answers Shepard plainly. I gasp, my worst fears being realized.

I compose myself before speaking, "Sir, what is my ETA?" I ask darkly.

"Five to ten minutes." He concludes before ending the conversation. I follow Roach as he jumps on the helicopter with Mactavish, waiting for me to join them.

When Roach extends a hand, I shake my head, "Sorry, seems Shepard's got a different mission for me. Good luck guys." I breathe, stepping away from the helicopter as they take off, not letting either of them ask the question of what my mission is. The wait felt like forever as I paced, waiting for my ride. The marines were working to gather Intel and kill any remaining Russians. But I my mind is else where, thinking to Archer and praying he won't do anything stupid. I bite my lip till I taste my own blood, my patience wearing thin. Finally the heli appeared and I jump in, "Fly, I got a life to save!" I demand, not wanting to waste any time as Archer's seemed to be ticking away slowly.


	11. Saving Private Archer

The heli lands at the base and Shepard is there to meet me. Shielding his eyes with his arms, he crouches over to me. I meet him, mimicking his actions. "G'day General! What's the situation?" I shout over the sound of the helicopter's rotor blades. When we're safely away from the helicopter, we straighten up and I beam at him, waiting for an answer.

He leads me into the building, starting towards the center guard tower. "He's out on the edge of the tower, ready to jump. He won't listen to anyone. That's where you come in." he notes. As we enter the tower, I see an open window and Archer a few feet away from it. I pop my head through the window and look over at Archer.

The wind is strong, whipping up Archer's clothes and my hair. "Archer, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" I ask, but my inquiry was carried away in the wind. I scowl and step up through the window despite Shepard's warning of how I'm on my own out there. I hug the glass, slowly making my way over to Archer. "Archer what do you think you're doing?!?" I yell, stopping a foot away from him as not to alarm him. Tears are falling from his eyes as he looks down at the hard ground 10 feet below.

"I-I'm going to end it! My life has been a living hell since Meat died!!" he cried, his angst weighing heavy on all his words.

Hurt grips my hearts, not wanting to hear him say that. "No, don't talk like that! Meat wouldn't want to see you this way; he'd prefer the happy-go lucky Archer! Killing yourself isn't going to change things, Archer!" I hiss, a sick feeling plaquing me.

He snaps his head towards me, unimaginable hate present in his usual calm blue eyes, "How the FUCK do you know how I feel?!" he spat. I'm caught off guard, Archer never swore at anyone.

I gulp, letting out a shaky breath, "Because…..I contemplated suicide too. I felt the pain of loosing someone and I honestly felt like there was no alternative. You want to know how I got through it?" I ask, closing my eyes as a smile comes to my face.

Archer looks at me, sniffle, "How?" he questions.

I open my eyes and look at him, extending a hand to him. "Friends. They showed me that killing myself would end up back lashing at them, hurting them. I love my friends to death and I wouldn't dare do anything to hurt them. Because I know I can talk to them and they'll listen to me and make me feel better. They'll wipe the tears from my eyes. Archer, we're friends, we can talk about this." I state. Archer looks over the edge questionably, and I keep my hand extended. "Come on; let's talk about his inside….far from the edge." I said, motioning with my head to the open window. He looks at me and smiles, the old Archer shining through the smile.

"Sure." He mumbles as he reaches to take my hand. Just then, a sudden gust of wind catches him and nearly sends him over the edge. But I grasp his wrist and pull him back before I let that happen.

My heart thuds loudly as I smile, "Hey, what did I say? Friends catch each other." I reassure him. We walk back inside, one of the tower guards helping me down. Some medics take Archer away to be examined in the infirmary. Shepard approaches me; a pleased smile sits on his face under his mustache.

"You saved a man's life today, congrats." He said, patting me on the back, "Great job, and you're dismissed." I nod, saluting him before exiting the room. When I enter the empty wing the team's base, I burst into tears. I had almost lost one of my friends to the darkness that haunted me so long ago. I slip down the wall and hug my knees, trying to calm myself. But the realization cuts me deep, opening the old wounds. Eventually, my tears subside and only the heaves remain. A vibration in my pocket scares me and I dig out my phone. It's a text message from Moli. I open it and blink, feeling the tears come back.

"Erin, I know you told me only to text you when it's absolutely necessary…but I just had a feeling you needed a friend to tell you this: We love you…don't do anything stupid!" she texts. I press the phone against my forehead, feeling the tears run down my face. Finally when I've composed myself, I am able to text her back.

"Hey, Moli. Thanks…that really brightens my day. I love ya all too, and I promise I won't do anything stupid." I answer her text, feeling the veil of sadness lift. I let a smile onto my face, knowing those dark times of depression were over and no way was I going back there.

Nor would I let any of my friends fall down that slope, especially Archer.


	12. Evening Visitors

Author's Note: Well…all I can say is This: Thank you! Really, I appreciate every single review I've gotten on my story. Even if it may not seem like, I do in fact take every comment to heart and use it to help with my writing. For that, I thank you all. And I've decided to keep these stupid 'author notes' to a bare minimal. Because really, no one likes to read these. So, if you have a question or want to get a direct response, PM me. Now, let the reading commence! Oh, and don't forget to rate and review. :)

Once I've gotten over my dark trip down memory lane, I start dinner. The time ticks by and by the time I've set everything on the table, the sound of incoming footsteps sound in the hall before the dining room. I smile, knowing their home as I finish cutting up the ham. I look over to the door and smile, still holding the knife. "Hey, how was the-" I start happily.

"Knife!" someone screams, causing me to stop mid sentence. I look at the knife in my hand and then over at the man in the boonie hat who pointed out this fact. He starts chasing me and I some how end up on the chandelier above the table, away from the crazy man.

I grip the chain that suspends the lighting fixture shakily, looking down at the man, "AHHHHH! IT'S A CRAZY MAN, A VERY CRAZY MAN!!!" I shriek, praying the chandelier doesn't detach from the ceiling. _Either I'm screwed over by the chandelier or the crazy man, oh what a way to go!!_

Mactavish blinks, look from the man to me, "Um, Erin…This is prisoner 627. Otherwise known as Captain Price." He states.

The man, known now as Price stops and looks at Mactavish, "Oh wait, you know her? Whoops, sorry 'bout that dear." He said, a British accent laying thick on his words.

Knowing he's a friendly, I relax and wave him off. "Please, I've had worst than a crazy guy chasing me. Like being stabbed by a friendly-" I report off handily.

"You were stabbed by a friendly?!" questions Price, appalled by this.

I wince, knowing he'd say something along those lines, "Well, it was a high stress situation and I said something stupid that confused him." I argue, pointing out the facts.

Price raises an eyebrow, "What'd you say?" he asked, clearly interested in getting the basic facts of the event.

I scratch the back of my head, "Knife me." I mumble, now seeing the stupidness as clear as day.

The boonie wearing man nods, folding his arms, "Ah, I can see how someone could misinterpret that." He remarks.

"I know, right!" I exclaim, feeling like he and I were on the same level. I look over at Mactavish, mouthing, 'I like this guy!'

Ghost walks up, staring up at me, "Umm, how did you manage to get up there anyway?" he asks, reminding me of my current predicament.

I glance over at him, a blank expression present on my face, "I do not know, I'm more worried about how I'm getting down." I answer back, trying to plan a way to get off of a chandelier that's a good 7 feet off the ground. _How DID I get up here, anyway?!_ Price eyes the anchor of the chandelier that is near the wall next to him, the wheels turning in his head.

"Well, we could always cut you down." He suggests, looking around for a knife.

I gulp, knowing that wouldn't end well, "Ah-h, no thanks! I'll jump and hopefully someone will catch me." I said, jumping from the chandelier without a moment's hesitation. It's just then that Roach enters the room, having no clue what the situation is. Luckily for me, he is in the right spot at the right time to catch me in his arms. He jumps a little, not expecting me to drop in. I let out a sigh of relief, "Phew! Good catch Roach." I comment, patting him on the chest.

"Chandelier away!" shouts Price, having decided to cut the rope despite the fact I've already found my way off of it. I open my mouth to comment, but Roach has thrown me 'out of harm's way'-or more like back into the frying pan. Because I crash into the wall face first. I clutch my face, staggering up.

"Ow, my face! Gawd that hurt!" I moan. The chandelier crashes, shattering into a million pieces, none of which were in danger of hitting me or Roach. I look over at Roach, anger flaring in my aqua eyes, "Roach..! I despise you….SO F-ing much right now!" I growl.

Roach shrinks back, a sheepish grin on his face, "S-sorry, I thought it would crash closer." He states.

I shrug, then fake crack my nose back into place. This causes Roach to utter a cry of surprise before fainting from the sound of cracking 'bone'. A smile flashes across my face, "Tch, gets him every time!" I laugh, knowing how much Roach hates that sound.

After dinner, I'm sitting by myself in the rec room, reading the news paper. Price walks in and coughs, bringing my attention to him.

"Can I talk to you about something?" he asks, sitting down on the opposite side of the couch.

I blink before tossing the paper behind me, "Sure. I don't like reading the news anyway. It's too depressing." I admit, shrugging, "So what's up?"

Price sighs before starting, "I want your honest opinion on Mactavish's leadership." He said, looking at me seriously.

I tilt my head to the side, wondering to myself why this guy's interested in this. "Well, he's a damn good Captain, sir. He always looks out for his team mates. But I can tell you were expecting something different, weren't you?" I answer, voicing my opinions strongly.

He smirks, closing his eyes, "Do you always talk like that to your superiors?" he asks, avoiding my question.

I mirror his smirk, "Ghost and Mactavish don't mind; only once in a while do they bring it up. Besides, it was just a simple question, _sir. _I didn't mean to offend." I reply.

There's an awkward silence between us. Price sighs, "To answer your question, yes I was expecting something different. But I'm still proud to hear Mactavish's leadership skills are up to par." He utters.

"Well, I'm sure he'd be happy to know his former superior is proud of him, sir." I respond, nodding slightly.

Price raises an eyebrow, "Strange, I don't remember telling you I was his former superior…" he mutters.

I smile slyly, "Oh what can I say; I'm a whiz at piecing things together. The only thing I wonder is how you ended up in the gulag." I acknowledge, showing I'm not all that knowing.

Price frowns; "Well, when Soap, that's Mactavish's old code sign, was a mere FNG-" starts Price.

I pause and stare at him with a confused look on my face, "Mactavish….an FNG?! Tch, I don't believe it!" I sneer, laughing slightly.

Price smirks, "Everyone starts out as an FNG, and even I did. Any ways, Soap was apart of a team. I was captain along with a man named Gaz. Soap really took after him, they were so similar." He tells, loosing himself in memories.

"Were, sir? I don't like where this is going." I breathe, not liking the past tense present in his story.

Price frowns, coming back from his memories, "Our mission was to take down Imran Zakhaev. Easy, right? Wrong. They blew up the bridge we were driving over and pinned us down. The own team was hit but Griggs, jumped up to draw Zakhaev's to him and away from Soap. That didn't end well for Griggs; poor kid got a bullet to the throat. Soap couldn't really see where Gaz was, but he did hear the gun shot echo through the radio…" explains Price. This last piece of informations hits me as I remember the talk over the radio we had about Archer and he said he understood how it felt to hear the voice of someone you value one moment and the next nothing. I feel bad for thinking he had just said that to add conversation pieces. "…It was then that I slid my pistol over to him and he shot that Russian bastard straight to hell. The allies came to finish the job and they whisked Mactavish away while they presumed me dead. What I didn't account for, was the survivor ultra-nationalists would imprison me in the gulag." He concludes his story.

I shake my head, "What a world we live in…." I mutter, the present condition of the world upsetting me deeply. But I decided to change the mood of the conversation, "So….got any Mactavish FNG horror stories?" I ask, a smile appearing on my face. Price looks at me and smiles back at me.

"Yeah, a lot." He said, stifling a laugh.

After listening to countless Mactavish FNG horror stories, Price bids me a good night and disappears down the hall. Archer appears in the doorway, looking at the ground.

"Hey Erin, can we talk?" he asks, his face a ghost of it's former self.

I smile softly, "Of course." I retort. He joins me on the couch and we talk. Mostly the talk is about the latest missions (excluding Meat's last mission), our new Captain and Roach's hilarious FNG behavior, but generally about Meat. I steer clear of sad stories and aim for the more light side of the story spectrum. We share a laugh, remembering Roach pull the ole tickle-your-nose-while-your-sleeping-so-you-slap-yourself-with-whip-cream on Meat. God, I swear Meat chased Roach around the base enough times to circle the earth twice! But still the tears come to Archer's eyes. I sigh, hugging him tightly around the neck. I pull away and grip his shoulders, making him look at me through his tears. "Hey, it's OK to cry sometimes. But remember, even the rain stops after a while." I comment. He nods, the tears not falling as hard. "See, friends are always there to give you a shoulder to cry on aaaand…!" I said, pulling out Kleenex and handing the box to him, "If you got issues, take a tissues." He takes it, a smile finally shining through the hurt and I know right then and there that he's going to be OK.

He stands and goes to leave but pauses at the door, looking back at me. "Thanks Erin…you're the best friend anyone could ever have." He sniffles, disappearing into the hall. I smile softly, taking that to heart. My eyes fall over to the clock on the wall, it's already 11:30 p.m. strangely though, I'm not tired, and so I pick up the newspaper I had tossed behind me and continue reading it. While my face is stuck in the newspaper, I fail to notice Roach enter and sit next to me. I close the newspaper and read the back, seeing him next to me out the corner of my eye. "Hey Roach what's up-HOLY CRAP, What happened to you?!!" I exclaim, noticing him holding an ice pack on his eye while numerous bruises catch my eyes.

He winces, "The latest mission wasn't really my best mission…first, that Price guy punched me in the eye. Then the Navy's bombing caused some chunks of rock to hit me in the head, the medics said I nearly got a concussion!" he mopes, removing the ice pack for me to see his blacken eye better.

I smile, pouting childishly, "Aw, I'm sorry. Would you like me to kiss the booboos?" I coo sarcastically.

Roach looks at me, trying to do the puppy eyes, "Please, mommy! They really hurt." He answers in a childish voice. I roll my eyes, a smile painted on my pixie face.

"Wow, we're so weird…." I comment, poking him in the arm softly.

He pouts, "Awww, so you're not going to kiss them?" he said, fake disappointment in his voice.

I smile, looking away from him, "Sorry, but no." I answer.

Roach smiles, "Well we'll see how you feel after THIS!" he said, suddenly attacking me by means of tickling. I burst out into uncontrollably laughs.

"Ahahah-Roach stop-ahahaha-sto-ahahaha-stop it!" I say in between laughs. He continues, relentlessly tickling me. We roll off the couch and lay on our sides, trying to catch our breathes after laughing so much. I look over at him, "Oooo you play dirty….But I shall have my revenge!" I said and pounce on him. I begin tickling him and he starts laughing uncontrollably. But he grabs me and rolls over on top of me, tickling me back. This reminds me of how Ghost reacted back in the kitchen and I fear of what would happen if someone saw this and took it out of context. "Roach-ahahaha-stop!-ahah-stop it!" I hiss, no longer playing the game.

He stops and looks at me, "What?" he said, obviously not realizing how his body looks over mine.

I push him off of me and glare darkly at him, "Dude, did you NOT see the way your body looked above mine?!" I growl, crossing my arms.

He looks at the ground, "Sorry….I just got caught up in the game…." He mutters, dejectedly.

We sit there for a while in silence before I crawl over to him. We share a glance before I kiss his bruise. I sit back and cross my arms, looking away defeated. "You win….this round." I growl. He smiles back at me, raising an eyebrow.

"So, up for round two?" he asks.

I shake my head, "Naw, it's too late. Besides, we have a mission to do tomorrow." I state, looking at him.

He sighs, "That's right…" he mutters as he stands up, extending a hand to me.

I take it and look up at him, "Yeah, so I guess this is goodnight." I reply shortly.

"I guess so…" He said. There's an awkward pause before he exits the room and disappears down the hall. I watch him leave and shake my head, _damn it Roach…stop being awkward! _ I exit the room and nearly collide with Ghost. He's not wearing his balaclava, and I can see his expression clearly-and he is not amused.

"Jesus Christ Ghost! You're such a stalker." I flusher, I do not like his expression.

He nods, "Sorry….I'm just curious." He said, dancing around what he wants to say. I gulp, fearing he misinterpreted the tickle fight as something else.

I smile nervously, "Don't you know that curiosity killed the cat?" I reply shortly.

He smiles, "Yes, but I'm not a cat now am I?" he retorted.

I narrow my eyes, "Oooo! You win this round, but I'll be back! I bid you a good night, sir!" I growl sarcastically before I start to walk past him. He grabs my upper arm, causing me to stop. I gulp, staring at the ground. _Oh he knows..._

"Doesn't seem you've been winning many first rounds…" he comments, and that's when I know he heard our tickle fight.

I steal a glance at him before looking back at the ground. "So you heard that…well I-" I start.

His glare cuts me off, "What the hell were you two doing in there?! It sounded like-" he starts but can't bring himself to finish the sentence.

I look up at him, "Like what? Like we were fucking?!? Good God Ghost! It was nothing like that! It was a simple tickle fight. Besides, _I _was the one who ended it because it was getting too…suggestive looking…." I trail off, the last part not exactly ideal.

Ghost sighs, letting me go and looking away, "The next time I catch you in a 'suggestive' looking situation with Roach….I'll be forced to bring this to Mactavish." He states.

I gape looking around to try and find where he came up with this, "What?! You got to be kidding me! Come on, your really blowing this out of the water!" I exclaim, placing my hands on my hip and glaring at him. He slams his hands on the wall, trapping me in between his arms. I stare up at him, shocked by his sudden show of aggression.

"That is NO way to talk to your lieutenant, sergeant!" he snaps, showing anger that I've never seen before in him.

I cower against the wall, wishing I could evaporate through it. "I-I-I'm sorry, sir." I squeak, shaking slightly with fear. Ghost's expression changes suddenly, like someone just flipped a switch in his brain. He backs away from me and stares down at the ground, shock in his face.

He looks up at me, an apologetic look on his face, "Damn it….don't say your sorry. I was the jack ass in the conversation…." He mutters disconsolately.

I gulp, the fear fading away slightly but still remains behind my blue eyes, "Ghost…?" I ask, still keeping myself pressed up against the wall, "That scared me more than the freaking _exorcist! _Now that's really saying something…" Hugging myself, I look over at him intently. "What's up?" I question.

He sighs, "I really don't know how that happened….I'm terribly sorry." He mutters, obviously not forgiving himself for snapping like how he did.

I walk up to him and place a hand on his arm, he looks down at me, "its called annoyance….it happens with some of the people you cherish most. They get on your nerves too much and eventually you snap. It happens to everyone…and it takes a strong friendship bond to move past it." I mumble, looking up at Ghost thoughtfully. He nods, his face softening. A smile appears on my face, washing away the rest of the fear in my appearance, "Well then, I guess that's that. G' night Ghost." I chime, starting down the hall.

"Yeah-good night." He answers back before walking the other way to his room. Before I turn into my room, I look back at him. I shake my head, disappearing into my room to get some sleep before tomorrow's mission.

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(Also, the last part was completely made up on the spot. So enjoy the improv!)


	13. Stupid Trees

The next day, I find my self on a plane, a parachute strapped to my back. The mission is simple, we were to parachute into the forest and meet up near the town. From there we'd make our way to the industrial park where the war head was being kept in a submarine. We had to secure it before the Russians could dispose of it. Simple, right? Wrong. I stand up just as the green light flashes on, telling us we're over the drop area. Just as I get to the door, I feel someone push me. This causes me to tumble out of the plane and continue tumbling in the air. I stop my indizziating tumbles and release my parachute. The parachute opens without problems, jolting me upwards a bit.

I click my radio on, "Alright, who's the moppet that pushed me?" I growl, not amused by this.

"Sorry 'bout that….I tripped." Roach answers back, knowing very well he's starting to get on my bad side.

I huff, shaking my head disappointedly. "Honest Roach, I swear you'll be the death of me-TREEE!" I exclaim suddenly as I realize my path has been switched dramatically as I'm on the opposite side of the village where everyone else was just about. I guess I caught a turbulent wind and I'm now getting whacked by trees. I quickly shield my face, wincing as I feel the pine trees slap me sharply. Eventually I come down farther into the trees, I swear under my breath as my parachute gets caught in the tree branches. Folding my arms, I hang there up in the trees unhappily. "Well this is just perfect! I'm stuck in a tree, I'm way of course. Oh today is sure shaping up to be a GREAT day!" I grumble sarcastically. Unsheathing my combat knife, I set to work cutting myself free of the parachute.

Mactavish comes over the radio, his location being back at the base. "Did you check your height before you started cutting your self loose?" he asks.

I blink, stopping my cutting even though I had only one more left to cut, "No, should I ha-" I reply but the last rope connecting me to the parachute breaks and I plummet to Earth. But luckily I catch a tree branch before I could continue my death drop. I breathe heavily, and then laugh silently. "Wow…Thank you Mr. Tree branch!" I chime, but the sound of the branch breaking makes me realize it's not over yet, "Oh, that's not good….looks like I spoke to soooooon-" I cry as the branch breaks and I'm sent falling down to Earth. Lucky for me, it's only a four foot drop. The snow might have cushioned the fall slightly, but still a jolt of pain runs up my back as I hit the ground. I let a groan escape my lips as I lay there for a second, waiting for the pain to die down. When it does, I stagger up. My eyes catch sight of my combat knife a couple feet away and I return it to its sheath. I grab my silenced M14 and give it the once over to make sure it wasn't injured during the fall.

"Price, do you see Erin or Roach? I can't get a reading." Mactavish radios worry faint in his question.

"I found Roach, he seems to be intact. We're heading to the village." Informs Price, not answering the part of the question pertaining to me.

There's silence before Mactavish asks, "Alright, does anyone have a location for Erin?" Annoyance escalating in his voice.

There's another pause and I'm about to jump in to tell them I'm OK. "No, I thought _you_ were supposed to keep an eye on everyone's location, Mactavish." Grumbles Ghost, not in the less happy that Mactavish lost sight of me.

I open my mouth to comment but Mactavish beats me to it. "Oi, will ya shut up Ghost! I just lost her, OK?!" He snaps.

"Way to be Mactavish, way to be." Ghost snipes dully, not letting this go so easily.

"Well, maybe if you stopped talking and focused on the mission-" starts Mactavish, intending to go on a rant about why chatter is kept to a minimal on stealth missions.

"Excuse me, but I'm not the one who lost her, ya bloody wanker!" growls Ghost.

"You know what, you scar riddled basta-" Mactavish spits, not in the lease happy about being called a wanker.

"Tch, look who's talking!" Ghost growls.

I blink and roll my eyes, _oh wow guys. Way to be. _"Bastard!" shouts Mactavish.

"Mother Fucker!" retorts Ghost, his accent flaring.

There's a pause and I quickly take this opportunity to jump into the conversation, "Whoa guys! Getting a little hot under the collar?" I laugh, putting my hands on my hips.

"Erin?" they both ask in unison.

A smile flashes across my face as I click once again into the conversation, "Course, who else were you expecting, Santa Claus?" I ask jokily.

There's an audible sigh of relief on Mactavish's line. "Well it's good to hear your OK." He mutters, off handily.

"Do you have any idea where you location is?" asks Ghost.

I blink then look around, "um, in a forest…In other words, I'm pretty sure I'm off course." I reply blankly.

"Right, locking onto your position. OH, yeah! Your **way **of course." He answers.

I scowl, "That's what I just said!" I huff, feeling like he didn't even hear what I said.

"Oh well the village is to the east. Make your way over there and regroup with the team." He informs me.

Nodding, I start that way, "Si senor….Hey are you two going to kiss and make up or are we going have to bring this to Doctor Phil?" I ask, stifling a laugh.

"Shut up Erin…" grumble my two superiors, not too keen on my gay joke I made towards them.

"Well, sounds like you two are back on speaking terms. That's always a-" I chime just as a bullet hits me square in the chest, hitting my bullet proof vest hard. I let out a small cry before I drop down behind a bush for cover.

"Erin! I forgot to mention this, but watch out for tengos. Your part of the forest is teaming with them!" he states, obviously not hearing the situation that occurred only seconds before through my radio.

I grit my teeth, pissed I had just walked right into that one. "That information would have been nice….FIVE FREAKING MINUTES AGO!" I hiss, wincing as pain renounces through my back. I ignore it and check around the tree to find the location of my attacker. The Russian is making his way over to my location to finish the job. But I easily take him out with suppressed fire and he drops like a rock. I give an audible sigh of relief as I stagger up. It's just then I hear the sound of dog barking and I see a german Shepard come bounding towards me, intent on ripping out my throat. Like his owner, I drop him too. A complete random thought goes through my head, _Wow, PETA would __so__ bite my head off about this. Hmm, get head bitten off by dog or PETA? Tough choice… _I continue sneaking past groups I'm able to and offing ones I can't. When I'm a safe distance away from any group of tengos, I decide to radio myself back into the conversation. "So, like I was saying before I was oh so rudely interrupted! Are you two going to stop swearing at each other like sailors?" I solicit, hating to see friends fight.

"…Fine, I guess I'll be the bigger man and say I'm sorry." Replies Ghost flatly, being the reasonable one in the argument.

"Yeah, I'm sorry too man. I just hate not knowing where my people are." Apologizes Mactavish and I can't help but smile.

I let out a sigh of relief, "Well then, I guess we can continue this mission now without worrying of having your guy's angry chatter giving away our position!" I chime happily. That's when the village comes into view and I'm happy to see the road ahead is clear. But I still keep my eyes open. The sound of Russian lingo causes me to drop down to a crouch.

Then I hear Price's chatter. "Alright, this ridge is a good spot to access the predator. Roach, send them a message." Comments Price, directing Roach. I look over and barely see them above the ridge. I blink, wondering what they were intending to destroy with the predator missile. When I peak around the corner of a building, I see what. It's a mobile SAM, complete with some Russian guards. It's then that the SAM locks on to the predator and fires a shot at it. But at the same time, the predator unleashes one of its own just as its hit by the SAM. The missile from the predator whistles downward. "They shot down our predator! Soap, we need another one!" Price informs. As he said that, the missile hits its target, causing the SAM to erupt into a fiery explosion. The blast kills a good five Russians but knocks me flat on my back. I'm stunned for a few seconds but the presences of the angry Russians are enough pressure for me to get up. Pain swells in my back as I let out a shaky breathe. I caught sight of Price and Roach sliding down the snowy hill and hide behind a stack of ammo boxes. "Alright, switch your weapon, they know we're here. Keep you eyes open for friendlies." Gruffs Price. I make my way over to them, staying close to the wall.

Roach sees me and is startled by something, "Erin, look out behind you!" he yells, causing me to drop down and turn to see a Russian had followed me. The two of us share a look of confusion before I drop him with a slice from my knife. I let out a breath slowly, resheathing my knife. Its then I notice he has a FAMAS and I switch it with my silenced M14, seeing is I would have no further use for it later. I hear Roach give an audible sigh of relief through the radio, "That was close…" he remarks.

I nod, "You can say again." I gulp. Unexpectedly, an onslaught of Russians appears from around the corner. They open fire towards me, a couple actually hitting me in the chest. I stumble back but I retaliate with return fire, mowing some of them down. The surprise of the shot dies down but is accompanied by more shots hitting my vest. I stagger back around corner and reload. Before I turn the corner, I think ahead and toss a frag in their general direction. After the explosion, I hear the sound of dying Russian. I use the surprise of this attack and mow down the survivors. When I turn around, I nearly shoot Price out of shock but luckily restrained my self. He's shooting at some Russians and the rest of the team has joined him. Roach is last to join the group, shooting at the remaining Russians on the side of the road I came from. He reloads and looks at me, concern in his face.

"You OK?" he asks, looking intently at me.

I scowl; still mad at him for pushing me out of the plane and for the last part of the tickle fight we had last night. "Yeah, I'm perfectly fine." I retort shortly. We advance with the group, shooting at some advancing Russians. We take cover behind another building, reloading. Everyone splits up, running for cover to be able to return fire. Before I can do the same, Roach stops me.

"Hey what happened last night-" he starts, intending to go into this long apology.

But I cut him off by holding up my hand, "Roach, I REALLY don't think now is the best time! And besides, I'm so over-" I reassure him just as a Russian pops around the corner. I shoot the Russian before finishing my sentence, "-that. Now let's get back to the task at hand." I don't let him continue because I turn around on my heels and start into the fight. Before I do, I tap Ghost on the shoulder so he doesn't shoot me. I quickly dart behind a small snow buried house where the only part not hidden by snow is the roof. I crouch behind it, taking into consideration the location of my friendlies. Price is at my 2'o clock, Archer is some where sniping and Roach is at my 11'o clock. Russians are rushing-

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Author's note: I have a joke for you guys. :) What are you when you're running to the bathroom? Russian! And what are you when you're peeing? European! Sorry, one of my friends told me this and I immediately thought of that when I wrote that sentence. Anyhoo! Back to the story.

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-Out on to the roof top. We shoot them and force them back. Price and Ghost lead, shooting at some Russians behind a wall. Roach and I finish them easily, following Price and Ghost. We eventually end up at the industrial park. Roch sends them a warm 'hello' via a new predator missile. Slowly we work our way through, Roach continuing using the predator. We come near to the port and Roach, Archer and I battle Russians who are hiding through out some crates. I lead the small force and think the threats over. Until I go past a corner and hear Russian. Before I can react, I'm on the ground. But it's not from the shot, but from Roach tackling me out of the way. He shoots the Russian easily with his pistol and looks at me, our nose almost touching.

"You OK?" he asks, his blue eyes looking right into my brown eyes.

I blink, feeling my face become hot, "uh, y-yeah. Thanks." I stutter, taken aback.

He smirks, helping me up, "Didn't you tell me to keep my head in the game?" he asks smartly.

A smile comes across my face, "Yeah, guess I should practice what I preach." I admit, wiping snow from my self. There's a pause in the conversation. "Well this has been a lovely chat but we really should be keeping both our head in the game." I comment, causing Roach to nod in agreement. He takes control of the predator as I pave the way.

Price runs past me, "I'm going for the sub, cover me!" he orders, shooting down some Russians before continuing his fast pace.

A smirk befalls my face, "I want a sub, and I'm kinda hungry." I remark off topic sarcastically.

"Not that kind! I mean a submarine!" snaps Price, obviously not laughing at my sarcasm.

I blink, "Oh….is it a _**yellow **_submarine?" I inquire, still being sarcastic.

Price still doesn't get the cynicism I'm using, "Will you just cover me!" he retorts.

Ghost leads us to a tower, "Come on, we have to cover Price. We're going to take that tower over there." Informs Ghost. We follow him, shooting at Russians who made the tower their refuge. Once at the top, I take a scope gun dropped by on of the Russians and take it. I go into the prone position and watch the sub to knock off a Russian that dared tried to get any where near it. Bullets hit the building to my right and I look over to see two jeeps have rolled up. Roach returns their attack ten folds, firing a missile from the predator. When most of the enemies are neutralized, we switch our attention to the sub. Just as we do, some more Russians have pulled up next to the sub. We shoot at them, trying to keep them away from the sub. Out of the blue, the silo doors open. "Price, they're opening the silo door! I repeat they're opening the silo's doors!" warns Ghost through the radio.

Price's voice answers please, "Good." We exchange looks with each other on the tower, wondering what he's thinking. But it all becomes clear when the war head is launched from the sub, the sound louder than ten jet engines taking off only a few feet away. I crouch, ridged in place with mouth agape as I watched the missile disappear into the sky. The only sign of it's present being the trail of smoke leading upwards.

Ghost is screaming into the radio, "Code black, code black! Missile in the air, I say again, missile in the air!" yells Ghost into the radio. I can't believe this has happened, fear gripping me as I think of what happened to those Japanese cities from the result of a nuclear missile. _Oh god, America's doubled screwed. _I look over at Roach who is shaking slightly. But it's not from fear, pure anger.


	14. Confessions

The plane ride back to the base is filled with silence, Price deciding to kick it with the pilot in the cock pit to avoid angry confrontations from the rest of the team. Roach sits across from me, his head in his hands. He still feels the impact of the sudden betrayal by Price. I sigh heavily and look at Ghost who sits next to me. "So, where do we go from here?" I ask haft-heartily.

He shrugs, "Back to the base, get a new mission. The usual." He states blankly.

Roach looks up at him, anger flaring behind his usual calm blue eyes, "The usual….THE USUAL?! That man just let off a missile at the US and your talking about going back to doing the usual?!!" yells Roach.

Ghost narrows his eyes at him, "That's what we do, Roach. We can't mope around in the past, we got to keep fighting." He remarks darkly, his green eyes staring intently at Roach.

Roach grips his hands into fists, glaring back at him, "What about all those innocent civilians that are going to die because of Price?! What about them? Or do you just not care about them, ya British bastard!" growls Roach, venom dripping from each word he speaks.

Ghost stands up abruptly, ready to sock Roach. I look over at Roach disappointedly, "Roach, that was really uncalled for." I mumble dismally.

He looks at me and then to Ghost, "But it's true….he only cares about how his country's going to get involved with the war. He doesn't care about US civilians!" Roach retorts.

"Hey! I'm right here! Stop talking as if I wasn't!" snaps Ghost, still ready to teach Roach a lesson in manners.

Roach looks at him, disgust in his face, "Fine, you British wanker-" Roach starts out, intending to go on with more cussing. But Ghost is already on him, beating the crap out of him. They continue fighting, Roach soaking Ghost hard in the chin. Ghost stumbles up, wincing at the throbbing pain in his chin. Roach jumps up and goes at Ghost, determined to continue this fight. I step in, standing in between the two fighters. Roach is now bent on getting at Ghost while Ghost is ready to push Roach out off the plane. Eventually, I'm able to push them both away from each other. I use my arms to keep them on opposite sides and not in danger of hitting the other.

"Alright, ALRIGHT! Back to you corners, boys!" I growl, looking from Ghost to Roach. They're still trying to get past and attack the other. I let out a heavy sigh, "Come on, first the kitchen brawl now this? Why are you guys trying to prove, that you really want to kill each other?" I inquire hotly, these constant fights I've been involved with really starting to feel as if I'm a referee or something.

"Oh, just let me push him out of the plane! He'll learn..." grumbles Ghost, not removing his eyes from Roach.

I look at Ghost, narrowing my eyes, "Ghost, what will he learn from that?....Wait, no! You are not pushing him out of the bloody plane!" I snap, realizing Doctor Phil talk wasn't working in this situation.

A sick crease of a smile appears in his mask, "It'll teach him not to forget a parachute. And to be careful not to _trip._" Glowers Ghost.

Roach tries getting past me, "Hey shut up! I didn't do that on purpose! Well at least I don't listen in to people's conversations!" he snipes, glaring at Ghost.

"Tch, well at least _**I **_don't stab friendlies in the leg!" remarks Ghost sharply, him pushing against my hold I keep on him. Roach does the same, my arms buckling and letting them in closer.

"Well at least I don't mistake harmless situations for suggestive ones!" Roach spats. I grimace, noticing most of the insults some how involve me.

"Anyone could have mistaken them…" mutter Ghost, still pushing closer to get a hit in on Roach.

Roach smiles slyly, "Well anyone could have, but it takes someone who feels something for one of the people in that situation to over think the situation." Coos Roach, his remark hitting Ghost. Ghost blinks, stepping back slightly. I look from Roach to Ghost then back to Roach, not believing he said that.

"Roach, that hit was way below the belt-" I start.

"Oh what, Ghosty done playing? What, did I hit a nerve?" laughs Roach, feeling he's won.

Ghost glares at Roach, "T-that's no where near the truth…" growls Ghost, still taken aback by Roach's sudden and violent mud sling at him.

Roach blinks and then tilts his head to the side, "What, you more into guys?" asks Roach. Ghost launches himself at Roach, literally ready to tear Roach's head off. I stop him, using both of my hands to keep him back. I use my foot to keep Roach back, feeling my own blood pressure rise.

"ROACH that was WAY below the belt! That was freaking in the 8th level of hell right there!" I snap, glaring first at him then back at Ghost who is still bent on getting to Roach. "Will you both please take a freaking chill pill?! My god!" I gripe aggravated.

Roach finally gives in, healing like a dog. The sudden unbalance of him not being there to hold my foot hits me, causing me to fall into Ghost who catches me. I look up at him, smiling sheepishly, "Thanks, Ghost." I reply plainly. He simply nods, letting go of my arms so I can rebalance my self. We all return to our starting seats. Once again there is a silence. Roach has fallen asleep, his head resting against the back of the seat. I look over at Ghost, looking at him with curiosity "Ghost…" I mutter.

"Erin." He answers me shortly.

I sigh, a smile appearing on my pixie face, "Tell the truth, you like me don't you?" I question playfully.

He sighs, looking away but I see a smile crease form in his mask, "Yes…yes I do." He replies blankly.

The smile slowly falls from my face as I continue looking at him, "Ghost….I'd be lying to you if I said I felt the same way…" I state dismally.

"Yeah, and I'd hate you lying to me about that. Now, tell me….Do you like Roach? No lies." He retorts.

I glance over at Roach who's off in dream land and I sigh, "Now that, I can't tell you. Because I'm not really sure. But what I can tell you is this," I answer him, placing a soft hand on his arm, "I love every single one of you guys, from Mactavish, to Roach, Archer and to you. You're my boys and I'd kill anyone who'd dare hurt anyone of you." A soft smile comes to my face.  
Ghost nods considerately, "And what about Price?" he asks off handily.

I blink, and then furrow my brow, "Well, we started out on the wrong foot and he seemed like an OK guy. But, from recent events, I can't help but feel we're back at square one. So I don't really like him as a person. He really pisses me off." I simply remark. We share a laugh, knowing full well that's how we all feel about him.


	15. goodbye

We sit in the briefing room, minus Price and Shepard. Roach stews next to me, Ghost on my other side chatting lively with Mactavish. Archer is conversing with some of the other guys on the other side of the table. "I still can't believe Price did that…" grumble Roach, crossing his arms and glaring at the table in front of him fixedly.

I let out an irritated sigh, _here he goes on again about the missile launch as if he's the only one who cares or who has family members over there in the states. _"Roach stop talking as if you're the only one with family in the US." I grumble, rolling my eyes.

He looks at me, suddenly realizing he's offended me, "Oh-I know, sorry. It's just, I'm extremely ticked at Price and I don't know if I'll be able to restrain my self if he shows his face-" starts Roach. It's just then that Price walks in and gives us all a small wave, opening his mouth to greet us. But Roach abruptly launches himself at Price without warning. Of course, Price easily takes him out with a punch to the gut, causing Roach to keel over onto the ground.

Price shakes his head, looking down at Roach with a look of apathy, "Kid, you got to wake up PRETTY early in the morning to get to me." He said, obviously trying his best not to burst into laughter.

Roach raises a hand weakly, "Duly noted, sir." Coughs Roach. After picking himself up from the floor, Roach retakes his seat next to me. Price goes to the complete opposite side of the table, far away from Roach. Roach clutches his stomach, "Gawd, that fuckin' hurt!" he mopes, wincing.

"Well that's what you get for being stupid." I answer him shortly, "What else did you expect from taking on a freaking Captain?" I look at him, waiting for a response.

He shrugs, "Hey, I won the fight with Ghost on the plane. So I thought I'd be able to take him on…" he admits. Ghost glowers at Roach, shaking his head slowly.

I notice and I shoot Roach a look, "Roach, will you just shut up. You really are starting to come off as an egotistical jerk and that's really pissing everyone off. More importantly, that fight was a draw!" I state darkly, crossing my arms.

"No, no I'm pretty sure I won. Besides, why you protecting him, hmm?" he asks, smiling at me goofily, "Is there, something going on between the two of you?"

I scowl at him, feeling my face redden, "He's my friend, dumb ass. Friends defend one another. Now shut the hell up, your really starting to piss ME off. And that takes a lot." I growl, looking away. His attitude is really starting to tick me off, _God I miss the quiet Roach…what the hell happened to him? _

He frowns, opening his mouth to speak. Ghost shakes his head, "Leave her alone, Roach." Ghost answers curtly, glaring at him intently.

"But I-" starts Roach, intending to come up with an excuse.

"That's an order." Snaps Ghost, cutting Roach off before he could continue add a comment.

Roach glares at him, "Hey, you know what! You can't give me orders, now there! How ya like them apples!" he omits, confidently.

Ghost raises an eyebrow questionably, "Excuse me? I'm your Lieutenant! I give you orders, I _expect _you to follow them." He retorts, fury flaring behind his green eyes.

"Well, maybe I don't like your mask and that's why I don't listen to you!" pouts Roach childishly.

"What? That makes no sense!" exclaims Ghost.

"Your FACE doesn't make sense! OOooooooh, yeah I went there." Roach fires back.

"Shut up!" barks Ghost.

"Shut your face!" snaps Roach.

"Both of you, shut up!" growls Mactavish.

"Hey, stay out of this!" retorts Roach.

"Yeah, I don't need you backing me up you stupid Scot!" Ghost glowers at Mactavish.

"Well you know what; you're a stupid British person!" Mactavish shoots back.

Price raises a hand, "I take offense to that…" he murmurs.

"Shut up Price!" everyone glowers at him. They keep going on with the argument, throwing names at each other. This just adds to my blood pressure. Finally I can't take it anymore, I snap.

"WILL YOU ALL SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!!!?" I yell, slamming my hands on the table. They all shut up and stare at me. I stand up and look at them all, "This constant fighting, me being the referee-is over! I've fucking had it with this shit!! I am just DONE! Goodbye!" With that, I stomp out of the room, leaving the rest of the team to think.

Ghost smacks Roach up side the head, "Way to go Roach!" he snaps.

Roach looks from the door to the rest of the team, mouth a gape, "W-what?! No, I didn't do that! It's was your fault!" he starts. The argument that usually follows is setting up but Archer stands up suddenly.

"GUYS! This is _**why **_she left! Because you all don't know how to shut the hell up! She's had to deal with this for a long time now and it's been tearing her up inside-to see you guys fight each other so viciously. She loves every single one of you guys, but now it seems she's had it. She's most likely going to request to be reassigned…and it's all thanks to you guys." He growls venomously, his blue eyes glaring intensely at all the players in this fighting drama.

Ghost sits back in his chair, sighing heavily and staring at the oak table in front of him deeply. Roach grips the side of his head, "Oh God, this is all my fault-! I've been such a selfish, arrogant person….it's cause of my stupidity that I've upset a lot of people." He mumbles, blinking back tears at the lost of the one person he cherished more than himself. I walk back into the room, choking back tears. He looks up at me, hope dancing behind his blue eyes, "Erin! Your back!" he chimes, happiness coming through his voice.

I sniff, shaking my head, "No, I-I forgot my phone." I mutter, as I walk over to my chair and retrieve my discarded phone. The smile on Roach's face is gone in a flash, replaced with a saddened frown.

"Oh…." He answers quietly. I look away from him, starting to the door. "Wait. Look, I'm sorry Erin! I was stupid, I was egotistical and I'm sorry for that. Just, don't go!" he begs, falling to his knees.

I bite my lip, stopping in my tracks. "Roach, I can't. I already talked to Shepard and he was more than happy to place me into a new team. In fact, we leave for a mission in a couple minutes." I answer him, trying my best not to fall to pieces.

He gasps, "No….Please! You can talk to him; get him to let you back on the team! Just don't walk out that door…" he mopes, his eyes pleading with mine.

I run a hand through my hair, "Now I'd be lying if I did that….this constant fighting has finally made me realize I've been the cause behind every one. Mactavish's fight with Ghost, it was because my location was unknown and they fought. And Ghost's and yours fights some how involved me. In the end, I've been the one causing all this pain." I sigh, trying to swallow the lump of sadness in my throat.

Mactavish shakes his head, "Erin, none of those fights were solely because of you-" he starts but I hold up a hand, stopping him.

"No Mactavish, they have been entirely my fault. Now, I've got to go…my other team is waiting for me." I reply haft-heartily, turning to leave. Roach latches himself around my legs, preventing me from leaving. I look down at him, an irritated look on my face. "Roach, let go…."

He shakes his head, "No, I won't! Those fights weren't your fault, I tripped and accidently pushed you out of the plane, and I've fought with Ghost because I'm an egotistical jerk! Now please, don't go." He pouts, ready to burst into tears.

I sigh, "I'm sorry Roach, but I have to go." I mumble, pushing him off of me. He sits on his knees, staring up at me with his sad blue eyes.

"OK, but before you go…I have to tell you something-" he stammers, ready to let his feelings be known.

I cut him off, "Roach, I have something to tell you…." I reply, placing both my hands on his shoulder and looking down into his eyes intently, "It's about today…..it's a very special day…..You wanna know why? Because, it's April's fool's day!" With that, I end this fake drama with laughter. Roach stares at me, mortified while the rest of the team laughs with, being in on the joke.

"Whoa, wait…what?!" he questions.

The laughter dies down a little as I look at him, a grin placed on my face delicately, "Duh Roach! April fool's day? A day dedicated to jokes, pranks and mischief? That's today! So, I'm pretty sure you can piece together that this all was staged a head of time." I answer smartly, placing my hands on my hips.

He looks from me to the rest of the team, "B-but the fights-" he stutters, gawking at his friends who smile back at him.

"All planned." Replies Ghost, a smile crease forming in his mask.

"Yeah, you didn't really think Erin would really let these fights get to her, did you?" laughs Archer, causing the rest of the group to join in.

Roach stares at the ground sheepishly, "Well, she did make it sound believable…" he admits blankly.

I shrug, happiness dancing in my eyes, "And that, my friend, is called acting." I snicker, watching as Roach's ears turn red from embarrassment.

* * *

Author's Note: :D Happy April's fool's day! Now, who believed that Erin would leave? Be honest!

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	16. Promise me

After our little joke, Shepard finally decides to 'grace' us with his presence. I feel I'm the only one who notices a new patch on Shepard's uniform. From my knowledge, it doesn't represent any other branch of the American armed forces which only perks my interest in the matter even more. I save the image to the back of my mind, mentally stepping back into the conversation.

Shepard's reflects a look of indifference with a strange glint of smugness in his eyes, "I've got a blank check and we're going to use every cent of it killing Makarov. There's a dangerous man in these shadows and we're going to bring him into the light." He remarks. A map clicks onto the wall from the projector, two locations are blinking slowly. One in Russia near the Caucus Mountains and the other some place in Afghanistan, Shepard commenting on the dots, "These are the last two safe havens for Makarov and his men."

Price folds his hard, mirroring Shepard's look of indifference, "Sounds like we have to be in two places at once." Remarks Price.

Shepard smirks, "Impossible?" he asks, though I'm pretty sure he already knew the answer.

"Not for the 141. 50/50 chance of taking out Makarov, eh? Price, permission to take the safe house in Russia with Roach." Answers Ghost, looking first at Shepard then to Price.

Price nods, "Granted. Soap and I will take the boneyard in Afghanistan." Price works out.

"We will cut off all avenues of escape; Makarov will have no where to run. This war ends today." States Shepard, a pleased smile playing on his face.

Price smirks, closing his eyes, "Strange, I could of sworn we ended this war yesterday." He admits, chuckling to himself silently.

Mactavish look at Ghost, "Take Ozone and Scarecrow as part of the ground force, Archer and Toad will be your sniper back up." He orders, Ghost simply nodding in agreement. I look over at Archer who's eyes light up when he hears he's apart of the mission to take out Makarov.

"Alright, you all have your assignments. Dismissed-" Shepard starts but I raise a hand timidly, drawing his attention to me, "Question, Nirent?"

I gulp, taking my hand down, "Well, it seems you forgot to give me an assignment, sir." I state, blinking at him.

Shepard scratches the back of his head, "Oh, I forgot about you….I believe your out. Sorry about that." He admits, not saving me any real sympathy.

"O-Ooh, OK…" I mumble, feeling my heart drop.

A light bulb suddenly goes off in Shepard's head, sending him on a search through his pockets, "Wait. I just remembered. I _**do **_have a mission for you. So challenging, so mind-blowing, that I only trust you with this task!" he boasts. My eyes light up, feeling this mission meant a lot. But, of course, Shepard never fails to dash my hopes for he doesn't pull out some cool tech object, but rather a rubrics cube. Truth be told, I died a little inside. He hands it to me. "Solve this and-" he starts, intending to go into how challenging this little cube is. I easily solve it, holding it up to him.

"Done, now what?" I ask, waiting for him to come up with some other stupid task like rubbing my stomach and patting my head.

He blinks, "Um, solve it again. And Again." He orders. With that, he exits the room before I can shoot him a dirty look.

Price stands up, "Alright, Soap let's head out. Good luck in Russia Ghost and…..happy puzzle solving Erin…?" he snickers, walking out the door with Mactavish close behind.

I scowl, so tempted to throw the cube at the back of Price's head. "Yeah, yeah your sooo jealous of me. Tch, good luck any ways, the both of you." I call after, a smile creeping onto my face. Archer looks at me, an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm sorry you have to sit this mission out Erin." He said, looking at me.

I shrug, "Oh they're be other missions-not quite as interesting as capturing Makarov-but they're still be missions." I reassure him, tossing the cube in between my hands. A bad feeling suddenly hits me, and my smile falters. The abrupt attack gives me no reason for it, only adding to the horrible feeling. We exit the briefing room, the rest of the team going off to get ready while I entered the rec room absent minded. I plop onto the couch, deep in thought as my hands solve the cube. My stomach lurched sourly, only escalating my uneasiness. I'm so lost in my thoughts that I don't hear Roach walk in.

"Hey." He said, drawing me out of my thoughts quickly. The shock causes me to toss my cube in the air above me.

"OH!" I squeak out of surprise. The cube falls back down, bonking me on the head. I grimace, clutching my head. Looking over at Roach, anger flares behind my auburn eyes, "Y-yes Roach…?" I ask, trying my best to control the anger in my voice.

He looks at the ground dejectedly, "We're going….I just thought you'd like to know." He responds quietly and it's almost like he's having the same feelings about this mission as me.

I can't help but frown, "Why does this feel like this is the last time I'm going to see you?" I choke out, fighting back tears. Without forewarning, I get up from my spot on the couch and go over to him. We share a look before I hug him tightly around the neck, not wanting to let go. I feel him wrap his arms around my waist and we both share a moment neither of us wanted to end.

"Don't worry, Erin…we'll make it back. I promise you, cross my heart and my hope to die." Whispers Roach into my ear, as we pull out of the hug. I look up at him, my eyes glistening softly.

I shake my head slowly, "Don't say die. Just promise me you'll keep your head in the game." I choke out, laughing haft-heartily.

He looks at me, smiling softly, "I promise." He replies. There's a silence before Roach places a hand on my shoulder and kisses my forehead. A blush races across my face as I stare up at him in confusion. He looks at me lovingly, "And I also promise to finish that, when I come back." He coos, smirking. A warm feeling fills me up, taking over the sense of dread for a minute. Ghost walks into the room, Archer following closely behind.

"Ah there you are Roach. We're shoving off." Ghost informs. Roach nods, as Archer approaches me.

He grins widely, "Hey, can you make dumplings tonight? I don't know about you guys, but I want some mother fucking dumplings!" exclaims Archer, happiness dancing across his face. I can't help but smile, feeling the old Archer is back where he belongs. He hugs me gangster-style, something we usually joke around about.

Ghost shifts, clearing his throat, "Alright, let's roll." He orders. Archer disappears through door; Roach lingers before winking at me and following suit with Archer. I stop Ghost, my smile dropping suddenly.

"Hey, Ghost? Promise me something, will you?" I ask in hushed tones. His green eyes beam into my brown ones.

"Yeah, sure, anything." He answers, turning to face me.

I rub my arm, "Keep 'em safe, Ghost. And good luck." I reply, dismally.

He places a hand on my shoulder, "Of course. Don't worry Erin, we'll make it back." He reassures me.

I nod before I hug him around the neck quickly. "You were listening in to my conversations again, weren't you?" I hiss into his ear light-heartily.

He hugs back, a smile crease forming in his mask, "Oh what can I say? I'm just cool like that." He whispers back before we break the hug. With that, he left with the team for Russia. Even with the team's constant reassuring their return, I can't shake this feeling that something really horrible is going to happen.


	17. The broken line

After sitting in the solemnly quiet rec room, I'd figure myself on the brink of insanity. Finally I can't take the silence and loneliness; I stand up and out of the room. My mind wanders to the rest of the team, worry plaguing my heart as I wonder how they're doing. I enter the center guard tower and take a sit in the corner with my rubrics cube, solving it for the 30th time since I was given it. There are three other guys in the tower, Dorales being one of them. We shared a look when I entered and he immediately walked to the opposite side of the circular tower, far away from me. The other two are deep into conversation, occasionally watching the front line. One of the two, a dark skinned man with a shaven head, stands up abruptly, calling all of our attention to him.

"What's that?" he inquires, pointing north. His friend, a short brown haired man, digs out some binoculars out of one of the drawers, focusing on the distance. Out of no where bullets spray the poor guy, killing him instantly. I duck down as Dorales and the other guy follow my lead.

Dorales covers his head, "We're under attack!! Sound the alarm, Dan!" he screams as he winces when another bullet ricochets in the tower. The other guy, who is we now know as Dan, slams a button on the control board which sets off the attack alarm. Dorales grits his teeth, "Who the hell are attacking us? Russians?!" he questions furiously, trying to get to the bottom of this mystery. Dan grabs the binoculars from his dead friend, peeking up over the counter to see what his friend saw.

He shakes his head slowly, removing his face from the binoculars, "No, those aren't Russian. I think they're-" he starts to answer but a voice sudden comes through the communications link with the ground force.

"CENTER TOWER! Do you read me? We need some help here!" growls the familiar voice of Captain Baltmore, the short temperamental man.

Dorales takes the speaker; clicking back, "What do you need sir, over?" asks Dorales calmly, still crouched under the counter.

"We need some sort of a plan, dammit!!" shoots back Baltmore, obviously not amused with the situation at hand.

Dorales blinks, raising an eyebrow, "Sir, what about the plan used for normal attacks on the base?" he questions, referring to the plan of attack where everyone goes at the enemy full force.

"Does it _LOOK _like its working?! You better come up with a plan b or we're all screwed!" the captain snaps back. Dorales fumbles around, trying to come up with a plan. An idea strikes me suddenly and I quickly rush over, snatching the speaker from Dorales.

"Alright, listen up! The plan of attack is to form a perimeter around the base with the majority of the forces on the north side. Don't let them break through, because if they do we're all screwed! Good luck." I order. I hand the speak back to Dorales who has come out from his coward place of hiding, "Your on com, keep an eye and ear on the situation." I inform him.

He takes the speaker and looks at me, concern on his face, "How is this going to work, since the restrain order-" he starts.

"I temporarily with hold it. We have a job to do, now who the hell's attacking us, some chechens rebels?" I question as I take the binoculars from Dan.

Dan shakes his head, gulping, "No, their too organized, too large of a force. It's almost like…an army." He states quietly.

I raise an eyebrow at him before I look through the binoculars. My heart skips a beat as the binoculars focus on one of the enemy soldiers. The seal on his uniform, hits me hard as I remember Shepard wearing the same exact one at the mission briefing only hours ago. I pull away from the binocular, ridged with shock and fear, "Shepard's men…? But why are they attacking us?" I breathe, the bad feeling in me suddenly making sense.

Dorales taps me on the shoulder, "Um, I don't know if this is a bad time. But the lead force is getting beaten-bad. Ideas?" he asks timidly.

I shake myself out of my daze and look at him, "Send troops from the South side of the perimeter to aid them." I order, breathing shakily as I feel my world falling apart. Dorales nods, relaying the order over the communication link. Suddenly, I'm hit with the realization that the rest of my team doesn't know of Shepard's betrayal. My heart literally stops when I think of this. Without a second to loose, I dash over to the corner where I had been. A radio sits on the counter and I switch it on, changing it to Mactavish's channel. "Mactavish, please come in!" I plead into the speaker, praying I'm not to late.

"Oi! What part of going silent, don't you understand ya moppet!" Mactavish growls in response. I let out a heavy sigh of relief, happy to hear his voice.

"S-sorry, sir. I just thought you'd like to know, the base is under attack." I reply smartly, venom surging in my response.

There's a pause at the other end of the line, "What, by who?" Mactavish questions back in a hushed tone.

I gulp, "By Shepard's men, that's who!" I shoot back.

Once again there is another pause, "But Price and I are working with Shepard's men right now and they aren't attacking us." He replies.

"Hey, cut the chatter Soap! We're getting close..." growls the familiar British voice of Price.

"Price, will you shut up! I'm trying to save you guys! Just because they're not attacking you now, doesn't mean they won't later on. Please, be careful…and can you please relay this message to-" I start but bullets pepper the tower and I feel one rip into my shoulder. I let out a small cry and fall onto my knee, gripping my shoulder.

"Erin? ERIN?!!" hisses Mactavish, obviously trying to stay calm and quiet on the other line.

I grab the speaker and click in, "Yeah-I'm here. I just got hit….Mactavish. Tell the rest of the team!" I plead, _For God sakes; don't let it be too late! _

"I will but they should be fine. The last time I heard, they were protecting the DSM and it was almost done uploading." Informs Mactavish. The bad feeling starts jabbing me sharply in the heart.

"They're breaking through the perimeter!" shouts Dorales, drawing my attention to him.

I intake a short breath, "What, where?" I ask quickly.

He looks at me, fear evident in his face, "Every side!" he informs me. This strikes me, my breathing becoming shallow. The feeling of our impending doom weighs heavy on me.

"And the status of the rest of the men?" I stutter, feeling I already know the answer. Dorales shakes his head dismally. I look over at the radio and realize Mactavish and Price has heard this whole conversation. "Mactavish? This looks like the end of the line for me…" I admit, negatively as I feel tears come to my eyes.

"No, no don't talk like that! You can make it out-" he said, trying to reassure me.

I shake my head, "Naw man, their closing in on all sides. Promise me something, Mactavish." I choke out, feeling the attacking force getting closer.

"Anything." He answers back.

"Get the bastard who did this-for me." I reply darkly. Just then, bullets rain in and kill the radio. My stomach flip-flops as I realize I've hit a dead end-literally. I slip down the wall, wincing at the pain in my shoulder. Memories flood into my brain, from the hot cocoa mystery to the recent April fool's joke. I think to the rest of my team, from Price and Mactavish to Ghost, Archer and Roach, will they end up like me? Surrounded with no way out? I think to Roach and I softly smile, _looks like your promise isn't going to come true…_A tear rolls down my face as I can't help but feel sad. What is the reason for this betrayal? Nothing makes sense anymore, the fine line of life muddied with lies, betrayal and deceit. Slowly, I feel my eyes become heavy as I let them close. My mind wandering to a world without all this chaos, where my friends wait for me.

* * *

I awake with a jolt, my eyes daring around me. I see I'm sitting in the cock pit of a little bird helicopter. Something is thrown into the heli onto the seat next to me and this draws my attention in that direction. Dorales has tossed a bad into the heli, shooting back at enemy tengos who are entering the hanger. The pain is still searing in my shoulder but I ignore it.

Dorales looks back me, "Get out of here!" he yells, shooting back at the ever growing force of enemies.

"What-aren't you coming?!" I fluster.

He smiles as he changes mags in his M4A1 carbine, "Naw, this is the end…this is where I go down in a blaze of gun shots for everything I've ever done wrong." He states quietly as he continues shooting.

His quote strikes me, making me realize he really isn't that bad of a person. I smile softly, "You're a pretty cool guy, Dorales. Maybe, in a different life, we could have been friends." I admit.

He frowns, "Yeah, looks like I'll be going to a different life pretty damn soon." He mutters. When he sees my look of sadness on my face, a smirk appears on his face, "Hey, don't give me that look. You're too beautiful to be sad. Now, go!" he barks. I nod, trying my best not to break down. I start the heli and take off. From my side mirrors, I see Dorales get surrounded and taken out swiftly. Bullets whiz past the heli but I pull up and out of the line of fire. When I'm a good mile away, I see fire erupt and claim the entire the base, devouring it into a giant inferno.

I pull my mind away and focus on the current situation at hand. Where am I to go? The US is in shambles, Russia didn't exactly like Americans, the base is gone and China isn't necessarily a nice place to be. Then it hits me, the one place war never touches, the one place no one ever thinks about: Australia. I turn the heli to the left sharply and start heading towards my destination. My attention is pulled to the bag Dorales tossed into the heli next to me. Using one hand to steer, I rummage through the bag and feel a glossy piece of paper. I take it out and look at it, feeling tears come to my eyes once again. It's a picture of me and my boys. Ghost stands off to one side, a semi-pissed look on his face but the smile crease in his mask tells a completely different story. Archer stand behind me, smiling sheepishly at the camera but his eyes are looking over at Meat who is using the seated Roach as an arm rest. A huge grin place on Meat's face is the complete opposite of the frustrated frown on Roach's face as he looks un-amused into the camera. I sit on the opposite side of Roach, near Ghost, a simple smile on my face as I rested my arm on my knee. Mactavish stands off to the other side of the picture, smirking. Memories flood back to me as I remember how hard it was to get them all to take this picture. I pull my attention from the picture and focus on flying. _Guys…I hope you all made it out. _


	18. one year later

1 Year Later…

Morning breaks as the young sun peeks over the outback. I roll over in my bed, my mind still in dreamland. My bed is pushed a gains the wall, the window sits with the blinds open. A lamp and alarm clock occupies the small side table next to my bed. A small closet is a few feet away from the foot of the bed, slightly a jar. The door to my room opens silently as the assailant creeps in wordlessly. I'm too lost in my REM cycle to protect myself, even though my desert eagle is sitting on the side table next to my bed. Without warning, the assailant pounces on to me, causing me to awake with confusion. Laughter escapes the 8-year old assailant's lips as she bounces up and down on the bed.

"Wake up, wake up, wake up!" she chimes loudly. I smile at Elle as her long unkept strawberry blonde hair bounces with every jump.

"Alright, I'm up! I'm up!" I said in between laughs. Elle jumps down to a sitting position as she tilts her head to the side.

A wide smile is present on her face as usual, her blue eyes shinning brightly. "Today's the anna…annavsiry…" she said, having trouble pronouncing the word.

A voice carries in from the doorway, "Anniversary, Elle." Laughs the voice.

Elle looks in that direction, pouting, "Stevie! I was 'supposed say it!" she huffs, crossing her arms. Steve enters the room; he's a year younger then me and shares the same features as Elle except his hair isn't as bright. I sit up and ruffle her hair.

"Oh well, it's the thought that counts." I reassure, smiling at her.

She looks at me, beaming, "Yeah, and it also counts with breakfast!" she coos.

Steve and I share a laugh, "Alright, I'll go make breakfast." I answer her. Elle gives a cry of delight before prancing out the room. I stretch and look at Steve. "Hey." I state.

Steve smiles, "Hey yourself." He replies lightly.

"So, what anniversary do you speak of, anyway?" I ask, hugging my knees and resting my head on them.

He looks at me, startled, "Don't you remember? One year ago, you came here and have helped us so much." He states, taken aback that I don't remember.

I frown, looking out the window, "Of course…how could I forget?" I mutter as my mind flashes back to this day, one year previous.

1 Year Prior

By the time the heli finally touches Australian soil, the tank is empty and so is my heart. My shoulder throbs as I stumble out of the heli. I take the bag and throw it over my good shoulder. I limp through the outback, letting the heli disappear into the distance. The sun slowly slips behind the horizon as I continue my journey into the unknown. Finally, it's all too much to bear and I collapse onto the ground, falling unconscious.

I awake in a soft bed, my wound bandaged up and my bag on the table next to me. A boy around my age is sitting n a chair next to the bed, a hard look of indifference sits on his face as he holds my desert eagle towards me. We both hear the door open, causing us to look over at it. A young girl around 7 peeks in, her blues eyes curious as to who I am.

"Get out of here!" the boy snaps, his Australian accent flaring. The girl obliges, disappearing back into the hall. He turns back to me, his blues eyes glaring intently at me, "Who are you and why are you here?!" he barks, demanding an answer.

I gulp, "I'll tell you once you put my gun down-it's kinda dangerous, kid." I state. He hesitates and I quickly add, "And I don't appreciate guns being pointed at me. Now, you want to know who I am and my business here…I'll tell you but I get to ask two questions myself." I breathe, getting a grip on the situation. He nods as he sets my gun on the table. I let out a sigh of relief, feeling lucky I won't have to disarm him. "Alright, my name is Erin Nirent. I'm a Sergeant in the international task force 141. My team, hell the whole damn task force, was betrayed by the very man who creat it. We trusted him and he ended up using our trust for his advantage. Our base was attacked by his men; the rest of my team was out on separate missions. From everything that happened, I'm pretty sure they've perished by Shepard's hand. I'm here because I was able to escape. Most likely they're looking for me, since I'm one of the people who know the truth." I explain, feeling my heart drop as I tell him about the unknown status of the team.

He blinks, speechless. "What-I-I'm sorry." He omits breathlessly.

I look away, blinking back tears. I've now come to the realization that my team has mostly been KIA and it tears me up inside. "Yeah…" I whisper, rubbing my eyes and looking at him, "Alright, now I get to ask two questions of my own. Who are you and what are your parent's thoughts on me?" I ask, changing subjects. The last question hits a nerve as a look of pain crosses his face.

"Well I'm Steve Dobe…that girl was Elle, my little sister. And my parents died in a brush fire two years ago…" he mutters dismally.

I blink as I prop myself up with my elbows despite of the dull pain radiating from my injured shoulder. "I'm sorry for you lost and I'm sorry I'm adding to your problems with my presence." I sigh.

He shakes his head, a small smile appearing on his face. "It's OK. Besides, a friend in need is a friend in deed!" he said, trying his best to smile strongly.

"Look, I promise I'll be on my way as soon as I'm healed." I assure him. Three months pass, my wound healed but I still remained. I became close to the two Australian siblings, hell they even became my family. I learned that Elle waited every day on the porch for her parents to come back, which Steve and I both knew would never happen. One day, Elle kept pestering Steve about when 'mommy and daddy' would come home. Steve exploded, finally admitting to her that her parents have been dead for two years. Elle, mortified, ran out into the outback. I accompanied Steve to find her, calling her name. What answered back chilled us to the bone: Elle's screams. When we finally find her, she's hanging on to a tree branch for dear life as a dingo tries desperately to drag her down and devour her. Before the wild dog even has the chance, I shoot it with my desert eagle. Steve rushed over to the tree just in time to catch Elle before she hit the ground. Through tears, he kept apologizing for yelling at her. Elle is crying but finds the courage to smile and tell him everything is OK.

I'll never forget what Steve said to me after, "Thank you Erin. If you hadn't been here….Elle would have become dingo chow. Thank you."

I smile softly, "Hey, it's what I do." I answer, feeling as if I was a real super hero.

1 Year Later

So we stand in the same spots we stood, one year ago, Steve and I. We share a look as we both remember the event. "I'm hungry!!!" cries Elle from the hall. Steve and I both laugh, going to feed the little child.

After breakfast, I enter my room and change into an off the shoulder dark blue top and ruffled black skirt. I sit in front of the mirror in the room, combing my bleach-blonde hair straight and flipping it over my shoulder. I stare into the mirror as a stranger stare back at me, but with the same eyes and face. I dyed my hair a year ago so I won't be easily recognized, though it still shocks me how different I look. It feels like I'm staring at a ghost of my former self, which in a way I am. Something in the corner of the mirror catches my attention. It's the picture of my boys from the 141 and me. I take it in my hand and stare down at the picture, feeling tears roll down my face. This so-called anniversary also brought fourth the reason as to how I ended up here. My friends stare back happily from the picture but my face mirrors back the complete opposite as I feel the pain of loosing them. Elle appears next to me, hugging me softly.

"You miss them, don't you…" she whispers. For an 8-year old, she sure knew how to get to the point. I simple nod, never removing my eyes from the picture as I stick it back to the mirror. Elle looks at me in the mirror, tears forming in her blue eyes. "I know how that feels." She chokes out. I turn to her and hug her deeply as we both cry for the ones we lost. This didn't break everything I stood for, since everything I stood for seems to have evaporated in the moment my world flipped upside down.

After our tears have stopped falling, we walking into the kitchen and I grab two glasses down as Elle goes to get the milk and cookies. She stares into the refrigerator, frozen. I blink, looking at her, "Elle….Do you see the future or what? Because there better be a good reason you're wasting the coolness of the fridge..." I remark crossly, hating it when she did that.

"There's no milk!" she announces loudly, disgusted as she pouts childishly.

I raise an eyebrow, "Really? Hm, guess I should get some more." I mutter of handily. I start lacing up my converse just as Steve walks in from taking a short walk.

"What's up?" he greets, interested in where I'm going.

I smile, finishing tying my shoes, "The sky. I'm going out to get milk. See ya guys in a few!" I chime as I walk out the door. The sun hits my face as I feel the warmth hit me. I sigh heavenly as a breeze comes and blows my hair slightly, cooling me. From there, I begin my walk to town. We live on the outskirts of town but it's not that far of a walk and I enjoy the quiet and peaceful walk there. It gives me time to think, mostly of my past memories. The feeling that something bad is going to happen hits me out of no where. I laugh nervously to myself, "Oh, I-I'm just being paranoid. I mean, come on Erin! You're in freakin' Australia! It's pretty much Switzerland to the world." I said, trying to calm my nerves. This brings my levels of paranoid down quite a bit and I continue to day dream about what would happen if I met kangaroo Jack and he actually talked….

I arrive into town, my attention drawn to a police car parked on the opposite side of the street. The two police men are exiting the building and I unconsciously advert my eyes. I see one of them pause and I glance up at him. We share a look and I fear he knows my true identity. But he gives me a simple wave before entering the cruiser. I sheepishly return it before walking into the store, letting out a sigh of relief. It's a relatively small store but it has the necessary foods and in the end that's all that matters. I make my way to the back of the store where the frozen items are kept. The milk shines brightly and I grab a gallon. When I back up, I bump into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry!" I reply, hurriedly.

I start to walk away but a voice stops me. "Funny, that didn't sound like an Australian accent." The male voice omits. Fear grips me as I stop short. _Oh no, nononononono! Shit, I think my covers blown. _"Hmm, where'd you get that scar?" questions the voice, prying. I reflexively touch the scar on my shoulder where I was shot. _This guy obviously knows who I am…_ I have to do something. I reach to where my desert eagle is usually hidden on my persons. But its then I remembered I had gone out without it. I chastised myself for slipping up, not believing how stupid I've become. The milk weighs heavy in my hand as I think to Steve and Elle. _Sad that I didn't have time to say goodbye-no! This mother fucker isn't going to get me, not this easy. _Without a second thought, I swing the milk carton toward the man. He blocks my initial attack but I fire a punch with my other hand. Which he stops and a surprised look comes across his face. "Erin..?" he questions. The voice is familiar and it's not till I actually look at the man that I realize who it is.

"P-Price?" I breathe, not believing my eyes. I relax from my attack position as I continue to stare at the man who I believed to be dead.

Price smiles as he tips his boonie hat to me, "In the flesh." He replies lightly.


	19. Erin's got a stalker?

I couldn't breathe, seeing Price alive shocked me. Tears hit me, "Oh Price, it's good to see you!" I blurt out, hugging him as tears of joy fall from my eyes. I break the hug and look up at hi, my tears ceasing. "Price…what happened?" I ask, desperate for the truth of what happened one year ago.

Price looks around, "Not here, Erin…come with me to the house." He hisses. I nod, paying for the milk before we leave. As we walk out, Price is making conversation. "Great disguise, by the way-scar kinda stands out though." He admits.

I shrug, a small smile on my face, "Thanks, I grew my hair out to hide the scar but I guess it didn't really work too well." I sigh. We continue walking, going into the outskirts of the town on the opposite side of town where Steve and Elle live. Price looks behind us, making sure we're not followed.

"I'm kinda surprised you didn't pull your gun on me back there…" he mutters.

I smile sheepishly, "Well, I kinda forgot it back at my place. Besides, I've been her for a year now and Shepard's men haven't found me yet. Speaking of which…" I say, giving him a look, waiting for him to tell me what happened to the rest of the team. Hope dances in my eyes as I feel if Price made it out, the rest of the team surely is safe and sound too.

Price sighs, scratching the back of his head, "I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you this….but Ghost's team didn't make it out of Russia." He reveals. I stop short, feeling my heart die as my head processed the information. Tears appear in my eyes as I feel the lost of my three friends hit me hard. _Archer, Ghost…Roach. All betrayed the very man who led us. HE led us all to our demise…like a Shepard leads a flock of sheep to the slaughter. Oh Roach, looks like you won't be able to fulfill your promise… _The last bit feels like someone put my heart through a shredder as I feel tears roll down my face. "It was Shepard's men, wasn't it?" I choke out, trying my best to compose myself.

"It was Shepard himself…" he answers me.

I look up at him, biting my lip in frustration. "How can he do this?! Why the hell did he betray us?" I snap, feeling hot tears run down my face.

Price sighs, "That's what Soap asked too…" he mutters, staring off into space.

I look at him, suddenly struck with fear, "Price, where is Mactavish?" I breathe, hoping the use of past tense in his speech isn't for what I think it is.

Price scratches the back of his head, "Well, we went after Shepard. You can only imagine how determined he was to get back at Shepard for killing his team. After we shot down his heli, our boat went over the falls. Soap recovered faster than me, going after Shepard on his own. He went at him with his combat knife but Shepard over powered him, ending up with the knife in Soap's chest." Price states, troubled by this Intel he just spoke.

I breathe shallowly, not believing what I'm hearing, "Oh God no…not him too" I moan, feeling I can't take the news of another team mates death all in one standing.

"Hey, I never said he died! After a brief confrontation with Shepard, I was almost done in. But Soap, that hard ass, took the knife out of his chest and threw it right in the bastard's eye!" he said triumphantly.

I smile but it falls immediately, "And?" I ask.

Price frowns, "He was hurt pretty bad by that son of a bitch but he's OK." He reassures me. I let out an audible sigh of relief. Sure I'm glad he's OK, but that still doesn't replace the fact that Ghost, Archer and Roach are gone. This almost causes me to break down again but I stop myself for we arrive at the house. Price opens the door, walking in first. "Hey, how's it going?" he asks. I follow him, leaving the door open.

A man with a thick Russian accent calls back, "Close the damn door! The A/C is on!" This sudden yell causes me to jump slightly and hide behind Price.

That's when I hear a familiar voice, "This isn't Russia, Nikolai! You got to get use to the hotness sooner or later. So how was the trip into town, Price-" the voice starts.

I walk out from behind Price, a soft smile on my face, "Hey Mactavish." I reply. Mactavish has walked in from another room but stops in his tracks when he hears his name.

We stare at each other for what seems like forever before Mactavish speaks. "Erin…? My god, I didn't recognize you at first!" he admits.

I run a hand through my hair, "That's what a disguise is supposed to do. You haven't changed one bit, Mactavish." I reply, smiling at him. We embrace and I choke back tears, trying my best not to cry.

"I can't believe it. I honestly thought I lost my whole team…" he mutters. Reluctantly, we break the hug and I look up at him.

"Same here. But I won't be here if Dorales hadn't helped me back in Kazakhstan….plus my Australian friends have helped me too." I said as I smile to myself, thinking to Dorales's dying redemption.

Price steps into the conversation, "It's good to have you back. Now we can get back to business." He informs me.

I look over at him, confusion present in my face, "Wait, What?" I question, looking from Price to Mactavish.

The Russian, Nikolai, stands and takes out a map from his pocket. He places it on the table. "Intel shows that Makarov is definitely here, in Russia's mountainous region-" he said, about to go into detail.

I jump into the conversation, shock on my face, "Hey! Did you NOT hear my question of 'what' or are you just ignoring the question?!" I huff, hating to be ignored.

Price looks at me, "We're going to kill Makarov, that SOB, once and for all…in one final attack." He said, answering my question.

I narrow my eyes, placing my hands on my hips, "And what makes you think I'll go along with you guys to help?" I growl.

The three look up at me in astonishment. "Look-" starts Mactavish.

I stop him, "No, you see here! I've made a life here. I'm not about to throw that all away. Give me on reason why I should help." I said, standing firm.

"He's the reason Ghost, Archer and Roach are dead." Growls Mactavish. I stop abruptly and look at my shoes.

Price joins in the reason naming, "You're as much as a war criminal as us and Shepard's men are slowly closing in on our position. Think how that will put your friends in danger. Can you live with that? With the knowledge your friends got hurt because of you?" he explains calmly.

I sigh, shaking my head. No way could I let my friends get hurt because of my criminal status. "Alright, I'll do this. But consider this my resignation from the force." I reply shortly.

Mactavish nods, "Once this mission's over, you can go back home to the states." He responds. I've almost forgotten the war with Russian in the US has ended and my heart flutters as I think to my family and friends back in Chicago.

"Alright, Nikolai, go get the plane ready." He orders, the Russian jumping at the chance to get out of this hot hell hole as soon as possible.

"Hang on, can't I at least say goodbye to my friends before I leave?" I ask quickly, not wanting to leave without a proper goodbye.

Mactavish goes over to me, "Yeah, I'll go with you." He said. We make the walk to Steve and Ell's with little conversation between the two of us.

I enter, "I'm home!" I chime and Elle runs up to me.

"Yay, Erin's home-" she said but stops when she sees Mactavish. She hides behind me. "Uh, Erin? I don't know if you noticed, but you have a stalker." She points out.

I laugh, "Elle, this is my friend." I answer her, smiling at her childish attitude.

Elle scowls, "What's he doing here?" she asks. I frown, not wishing to tell her right away I'm leaving but I know I'd eventually have to.

"Umm, where's Steve?" I ask, looking around.

Elle never removes her eyes from Mactavish, "Sleeping. STEVE! THERE'S A MAN HERE!" she calls. We hear a thud and the sound of shuffling footsteps approaching us. Steve appears with hair a mess.

He yawns, "Who-" he stops, waking up immediately when he sees Mactavish. A look of indifference is shared between the two. "Who the hell are you?" growls Steve.

Elle runs over to Steve, hugging him around the waist, "He's Erin stalker! I think he's that creepy Shepard guy who's after her!" she whimpers, burying her face into Steve's shirt. Steve looks up and slowly reaches for something in his pocket.

"Easy boy, don't do anything stupid." Growl Mactavish, his Scottish accent flaring.

Steve doesn't listen, whipping out my desert eagle and pointing it at Mactavish. "I don't know who you are…but no one, and I mean NO ONE comes into my house-" snaps Steve.

"Steve! Give me my damn gun!" I grumble, not the least bit happy with him stealing my gun.

Steve never removes his eyes from Mactavish, "No, I don't trust this guy." He answers. I roll my eyes, forcing the milk into Mactavish's arms as I stomp over to Steve. I easily disarm him, snatching the gun away.

"OK, how many times I've I told you NOT to touch my gun?! It's really powerful and I hate you using it! Especially against my superior!" I snipe, placing my gun on my persons.

Steve blinks, looking at Mactavish, "Superior?" he questions.

I sigh, rolling my eyes, "Yes, Steve, my superior. This is John Mactavish. Mactavish, this is Steve and that is Elle." I introduce them briefly.

Mactavish smirks, "Charmed." He said sarcastically. Steve grunts distastefully.

After I place the milk in the fridge, I sit down at the table. Ell and Steve sit on the opposite side as Mactavish and I. I sigh, after I explain the whole encounter.

"So now I'm going to go with them to get the guy who is responsible for all this, Makarov." I finish, frowning sadly. Steve remains silent, knowing I'm not coming back to them after this mission.

Elle looks at me, childish innocence shining in her face, "When will you be back?" she asks.

I look away, forcing back tears, "Elle…I-" I start but Steve cuts me off.

"She's **not** coming back Elle. After this mission, she's going back to her home." He said harshly.

Elle looks at me, her eyes glistening, "No! You can't leave because I'll miss you!" she cries.

I sigh, looking over at Mactavish then back at the two Australians, feeling torn inside about this whole situation. "Look, I have to do this. Makarov is the reason all this chaos happened and he has to face the light." I state, trying to assure them I'm not doing this to hurt them.

Steve stands up abruptly, "So you're leaving us…" he mutters darkly.

"Steve, I-" I start. But Steve puts up a hand for me to stop.

"Go ahead…just leave us to go play army!" he snaps before he stalks out of the room and into the outback.

I stand up, "Steve! Come on….Tch. Why is goodbye always the hardest thing to say?" I mumble sadly, remembering how I said good bye to the team a year ago and how it still pains me to date. I start to go after him, but Mactavish stops me.

"I'll talk to him…" he said, leaving the table to go after Steve.

Switch POV (Mactavish)

It doesn't take me long to find this Steve guy. He is kicking a rock, hand in pocket. "Hey." I call to him.

He looks up, glaring at me darkly, "What the hell do you want…why don't you just leave?!" he snarls back.

I return his glare, "Look, the reason Erin's doing this is because she doesn't want you guys to get hurt." I explain as I feel like this guy isn't listening.

Steve scowls, looking away, "Funny, sure feels like it.." he scuffs.

I grab his collar, bringing his attention to me, "Listen, you moppet!! This isn't about you! She's doing this for the greater good! She's putting her life on the line for the world's safety-and you only care about your self?!" I snap. He looks away and I push him away, "Worthless-" I start.

"You're wrong. I don't just care about myself….I'm just worried about loosing her. Because…I care about her deeply." He mutters, gritting his teeth.

I blink before a broad smile comes across my face, "You obviously don't know Erin. She's capable of taking someone two times as strong as her, down. Look, this mission is very important to the world-and Erin. She's ready, but she'll only go if she knows you're OK." I admit.

Steve sighs, running a hand through his hair, "Just promise me one thing…make sure she doesn't get hurt." He mutters.

I nod, "Of course. Now let's get inside to get these damn goodbyes over with." I said as we start for the door. I pause, stopping him, "You like her, don't you."

Steve stops short and looks at me, sighing, "Yeah, a lot. But I know it'll never be…" he states dismally.

I raise an eyebrow, "why, because of the distance?" I question.

Steve shakes his, "No, because she loves this guy named Roach…who died. I can tell from the way she told me about him, how choked up she was, that they both were in love with each other. No way in hell would I ever try to take his place, because that'll just hurt her even worst." He sighs, smiling softly.

I blink, not saying anything as we continue to the kitchen. _I knew it…but I still can't believe that those two would end up together. Damn, what a sad story. Kinda like Romeo and Juliet. _

Switch POV (Erin)

After a brief few minutes, Steve and Mactavish walk back in. I've been consoling Elle but she refuses to let me out of her tight hug.

"Erin…I'm sorry." He blurts out, sadness dancing behind his eyes.

I look at him, "And I'm sorry for how things turned out…" I mutter dejectedly.

"You better start getting your stuff together. Seems Nikolai's more than happy to take off without us to his cold home of Russia." Mactavish states, hurrying along the goodbyes.

I nod, looking down at Elle, "Elle, you're going to have to let go…" I whisper. She shakes her head, burying her face in my shirt. Steve and I share a look, knowing what he had to do. He pulls Elle off of me, who is trashing about as tears stream down her face. Steve grips her in a hug which calms her down slightly. I sigh as I walk to my room to gather my stuff. Mactavish leans in the doorway of my room as I pack. I pause as I take the picture of the 141 into my hands. Heaving a heavy sigh, I slip it into the bag.

"Is that everything?" asks Mactavish. I nod, not wanting him to see my tears. He sighs, "You know they won't want to see you cry…" he mumbles, referring to our dearly departed friends. I straighten up, slipping the desert eagle into a hoister on my belt. By now, I've changed my skirt to dark camo cargo pants and have slung a dark hoodie over my off-the shoulder top.

I look at him, "If we're doing this, I'm going to need to borrow your combat knife for a minute." I breathe, confidence coming through my words. He nods, handing it to me. I take it and walk over to the open window. Pulling my hair into a ponytail, I take the knife and cut the long hair I had used to disguise myself. I let the excess hair fly out the window and I'm left with my hair about the same length as it was back with the force-just blonde. I hand the knife back to Mactavish, a frown on my face, "Now, I'm ready." I said, staring intently at him, the tears having dried from my eyes. I grab my knapsack and follow him out to the kitchen. Steve is sitting with Elle who has stopped sobbing. I cough, bringing both of their attention to me. Elle jumps off her seat and wraps me in a hug that I graciously return.

"I'm going to miss you…" she mopes, tears trickling out the corners of her eyes.

"I'm going to miss you too, kid." I said. She squeezes me before stepping back. Steve walks up and extends a hand to shake. I look at it then hug him around the neck,  
"Bitch please! That's no way to say goodbye to someone!" I snipe lightly at him. We break the hug and I look from Steve to Elle, a weak smile on my face. "God, I'm going to miss you guys…" I say out right, admitting to them.

"And us you. Now go kick some ass." Steve rallies, putting an arm around his little sister's shoulder for comfort. My smile strengthens with his words of confidence. With that, I left the house that had become my home and the people who became my family. Instead of crying, I slip back into my state of mind. Reminding me that crying wasn't going to change things, you have to go up and change them yourself. And changing Makarov's status from alive to dead is a great start.


	20. Final Confrontation

Finally, after a long flight filled with turbulence and uneasy silence, we arrive at the LZ. We check our weapons before walking out into the taiga forest of the mid latitude Russian forest. Nikolai pulls his plane away and he disappears behind the mountains. Mactavish pulls a map out.

"Alright. The safe house is here. Intel shows it's lightly guarded on the outside. No word, though, on the number of tengos inside or if Makarov's even in there." Grumbles Mactavish, folding the map back up and placing it in a pocket.

Price shakes his head, "He's here alright, this is his last place to hide." He mumbles.

I nod, "Let's get going then. I want to get this bastard once and for all." I hiss, feeling no sympathy for the man who had caused this all with just the pull of trigger. We keep crouched as we make our way to the house, stealth being key. Well, for once the Intel is right: Only two guys are guarding the front door. We drop them silently and approach the front door.

"Plant the breaching charge, Erin." Orders Mactavish, taking one side of the door as I place the charge and duck on the other side. The door is blown in and we rush in, shooting down Russians.

"Top floor clear!" shouts Price, changing mags.

"I'm clearing upstairs." I shot, going towards the stairs. Price nods, going to clear the down stairs with Mactavish. Rushing upstairs, I check the open loft area to my immediate right. No Russians. Kicking down a door, I shoot a hidden Russian who had taken refuge in the small linen closet. The next door, the last door, has the sound of scuffling boots that draws my attention to it.

Mactavish comes over the radio, "Basement clear. We're making our way to you, Erin." He reveals.

I nod, "'k, I'm clearing the last room right now. I guarantee I'll have Makarov-alive." I said, snarling the last part. I set the charges, ready to set them off.

"Erin, wait! You don't know what or who's behind that door! Wait for our back up!" he growls. But the charges are already set and I couldn't let this guy get away, so I decide to go against his orders-just this one time. The charges go off and I slip into the room, shooting down all the Russians who are out in the open. Suddenly, I'm grabbed from the side and a cold knife is pressed against my throat as the man holds me in a tight grip.

"Don't move if you want to live." A voice growls in my ear with a heavy Russian accent. I gulp, careful to not move.

Mactavish and Price dash in, stopping short when they see the situation I'm in. Mactavish glowers at the man darkly, "Makarov…let. Her. Go!" Mactavish growls, anger flaring in his Scottish accent.

Makarov, I presume is the man who holds me captive, laughs, "Now why would I do that? You'll no less kill me." He said, looking down at me, brushing my bangs aside, "But with her, I can guarantee you'll have two deaths on your hands if you're a little too trigger happy." I look over at Mactavish, my eyes pleading.

"Makarov, either way you'll end up dead." States Price, glaring intently at the Russian.

Makarov scoffs, smirking, "True, but I'll be taking your little friend here with me…Can you live with that Mactavish? Can you live with the fact that you let another one of your teammates slip through your fingers, hmm?" he asks, getting into Mactavish's head. I see this hit Mactavish hard as a look of grief flashes across his face. He lowers his gun, defeated. "Atta boy, just heal like a dog." Laughs Makarov.

Panic escalates in me as I look at Mactavish, "Mactavish! Don't listen to him!! Just shoot him! I'll be fine! He'll kill me either way…he really doesn't care what happens to me. The only thing he cares about is himself." I snap, causing Makarov to stop laughing and look down at me.

"Oh, well it looks like someone finally got it." He said, smirking as he looks up at my two friends, "Quite a smart girl you got here, shame she's going to have to die because of you."

I look over at Mactavish, the fear in me disappearing. I smile softly at him, "Hey, if I die here, promise me you won't blame yourself for it." I say lightly, reaching for my combat knife, cautious not to alert Makarov's attention.

A feeble smile crosses the Scot's face, "I'll try…" he mutters, dismally.

I grip the knife tightly, closing my eyes, "Makarov…from the way you talk, you sound certain you've thought of everything. But one thing you didn't account for was how willing I am to die just to bring you down. Because of you, three of my best friends were killed. So I can't let you just walk out of this alive. If I die, then at least I'm taking you with!" I growl. I spin the knife in my hand and stab him sharply in the leg. In his confusion, Makarov's grip on me loosens but not before his knife slices across my throat. Using all my strength, I push his arm off of me, disarming him and delivering a lethal slice to his throat. With the deed done, I go to let out a joyous cheer but the cut stops me. I fall back, choking on my own blood. Mactavish catches me before I hit the floor.

"Erin, no! God dammit, you can't die!" he pleads. I look up at him, trying to say something to reassure him but again I cough on my own blood. My breathing shallows as my lungs can't take any more liquid. My visions blurs as I see Price giving me medical attention. Suddenly, I black out. That famous light at the end of the tunnel gleams at me, beckoning me to it. At the end, I swear I see Archer, Ghost and Roach. I start towards them, the light engulfing me, blinding me.


	21. Back from the brink

A/N: Well. I hope I made you all sweat enough. Ha. The last chapter may have seemed like the end, but it wasn't. So just sit back, relax and enjoy the read. Please rate and review.

Groggily, I open my eyes and canvas my new surroundings. It's a dark and lifeless hospital room, the only source of light coming from a dim fluorescent light above my bed. I glance down at the IV in my arm and notice movement in the corner of the room. Sitting there in a chair, asleep, is Mactavish. A smile forms on my lips as I try to get his attention but only pain comes through my throat. I sit back, discouraged. That's when Price walks in with a doctor, looking from Mactavish to me.

"Well at least someone's awake." Remarks Price dryly.

This causes Mactavish to stir, "I wasn't sleeping, I was merely resting my eyes." he shoots back, yawning. He looks at Price but then over to me. He looks like he hasn't slept in a while and I can't help but ponder why.

I hear Price laugh, "Yeah, sure." He chuckles lightly.

The doctor walks over to me, his dark green eyes scanning my bandage on my neck, "How are you feeling, Miz. Deran?" he asks, smiling sweetly at me. I blink, wondering who the hell this guy is talking to do. It takes me a couple seconds for me to piece together that Price and Mactavish checked me in under a false name. I open my mouth to respond but the doctor shoves a notepad and pencil at me instead.

I take it, writing down my answer, "Fine Doc, except I can't speak!!" I write, showing him my reply.

He chuckles, "Will, you'll be healed in no time." He reassures me. His pager beeps abruptly, summoning him else where.

Price shuts the door soundlessly after the doc. I take the pad, "So, where the hall am I anywhere?" I write, showing him my question.

"A hospital, in Latvia." He replies, knowingly.

I smile, scribbling down something on the paper before showing him, "Europe, eh? I sure am hitting every continent aren't I?" Price smiles back, a forced smile. I sense this, flipping a new page open. "Drop the charade Price. You look like a creeper." I write, not happy when people don't come out with what they want to say right away. Price sighs, dropping the fake smile. "What's up? What was with the forced smile? Makarov's dead, isn't he?" I scribble, showing him.

Price nods, "Yeah, he's dead…" he answers, trailing off silently.

There's a silence as I write down my words, "So why are you avoiding my question?" I resist the urge to write a funny comment after, not wanting to come off as a silly funny question.

Price sighs, looking over at Mactavish who has dozed off once again, "Erin. You died three times on the table….they didn't think you'd come back from the last time…" Price mutters in a hushed tone. I gulp painfully, touching my throat delicately. "Honestly, the only one who believed you'd come back…was Soap." He replies softly. I look over at the sleeping Scot in thoughtfulness, and then back at Price.

"Really? Damn…I would have given up on me after the 2nd time I died, lol." I write, not realizing I wrote the text lingo at the end.

Price frowns, "That's not funny." He replies darkly.

I raise an eyebrow sarcastically, writing, "Does it look like I'm laughing?"

"Well, you did put 'lol' at the end of that sentence…" Price points out.

I blink, "Sorry…force of habit." I write on the pad.

Price smirks, "Isn't everything. Look, I got to go talk to Nikolai. You should get some rest." He suggests, starting to the door.

He pauses when he sees me writing something down. I pout, showing him what I wrote, "Yeah, but I don't want to. I kinda want to stay in the world of the living."

Price rolls his eyes, "Nice. I wonder how the team put up with all your sarcasm." He replies wryly. My smile slips from my face, remembering how Ghost always made a comment on my cynical words. Price doesn't see what he's said has effected me, exiting the room quietly. I look over at Mactavish, wondering how he was able to believe in me after I died three times. Frowning, I wonder how it would have been different if I had waited for Price and him to clear the room with me. Hell, I wonder how life would be if Makarov never killed all those civilians at the airport or if Shepard hadn't betrayed us. The rest of the team wouldn't have been eliminated and the remaining living team wouldn't be hunted war criminals. _God, what a mess...I wish there was something I could do- _I stop my thought abruptly, my eyes falling upon the notepad I had been given to communicate with. A sly smile comes across my face, my mind hatching a plan. And so, in the back of the notepad, I start writing the events and adventures that befell my division, starting with that slow day that started slow with no missions or briefings for that matter….

After a good two hours of non-stop writing, I had almost filled the note pad up and I wasn't even haft way through detailing the life of the division. I gripped my hand, feeling it ache after having been writing so much. I look up, seeing Mactavish is still asleep. Scowling, I scribble something down on a piece of paper before crumpling it up and tossing it at him. He wakes with a jolt, looking around till he notices the crumpled up ball of paper on his lap. He un-crumples it, reading what is scribbled upon it. "Sleeping on the job?" it reads. He chuckles silently, but I can see something troubling him behind his blue eyes. I scribble something on the pad, displaying my writing, "Thanks." Is all it said.

He looks at me, perplexed, "For what?" he asks.

I smile softly as I hold up my response, "For not giving up on me when everyone else did."

He smiles back, "Course, why would I?" he mutters. I shrug, the note pad slipping from my lap onto the ground. Furrowing my brow, I try reaching for it to no avail. Mactavish walks over, picking it up for me. He notices the writing in the back and reads it, his normal unfazed face shifting as he reads the memories I wrote. "You wrote all this?" he breathes, taking in the sudden trip down memory lane.

I nod, extending a hand to take the note pad back. He hesitates but eventually hands it back to me. "Once I get better, I'll get this published and take it to the highest court! They'll see this and realize you and Price had just cause to kill Shepard!" I write, hope dancing in my eyes. Mactavish blinks, mouth slightly agape, unable to comprehend this unexpected on-slot of information. "You can thank me later…just, don't forget them OK?" I write, referring to our fallen friends. I beam at him, feeling tears grip me.

Mactavish smiles at me softly, "How could I?" he responds quietly.


	22. Down to business

After months of recovery and speech rehab, I'm finally able to go home. At the airport, I wait anxiously for my plane to land. Price and Mactavish are there with me, accompanying me. The story is near completion, saved for the final chapters. The rest of the chapters have been typed up and saved to a flash drive that I keep close me, protecting it with my life. "I've already gotten in contact with an editor who'll make sure the story gets published everywhere! Our story will be heard, our truth _**will**_ be written." I beam, feeling I'm slowly making my way to the top of the world.

Price frowns, "What about those loyal to Shepard? Won't they simply brush off your story since you're just a simple Sergent?" he asks, brining me down a notch.

I shake my head, "Naw, some of the smallest people have been known to have loud voices." I respond lightly.

Mactavish wrings his hands, "Then they'll want to make sure that voice is silent, wouldn't they?" he replies quietly.

The smile falls from my face as I let out a sigh. I knew I'd face the chances of being hurt, threatened or even killed for destroying the heroic face of America's 'great' general, Shepard. "Yeah. But by in by, I really don't care what happens to me. Because it's not about me, it's about showing the world the true face of Shepard. And if I have to die to amplify that, then bring it on. Because through thick or thin, through pain or death, we'll remain on course. Because we know that the ones we care about, the ones we lost wouldn't want us to stop. But continue on and pave that fine line through all this chaos." I preach, feeling righteous.

A voice comes over the speaker, "Flight 172 to Chicago is now bordering, flight 172 is now bordering." The voice speaks bored. I stare, a bitter sweet feeling hitting me.

Price sighs, "There's your ride." He remarks dismally. I nod, unable to speak in fear I'll burst into tears. I start to the bordering hall but stop and look back at my two comrades.

"So, I guess this is goodbye." I mutter, not wanting to say goodbye.

Mactavish nods, "'fraid so…" he grunts, letting out a heavy sigh. Dropping my carrying on bag, I rush over to him and hug him tightly around the neck.

"Goodbye, Mactavish." I whisper, feeling tears come to my eyes.

He hugs me tightly, "G'bye Erin." He replies softly.

Tears brim my eyes, "Good luck with what ever you do. And I promise I'll get you guys on the public's side." I say confidently. I break from Mactavish's embrace and look at Price. I hug him tightly, "Today, history will be written by the victor. Our truth _will_ be known." I hiss. With that, I start toward the plane, taking one last look back at my friends before disappearing into the boarding hall.

The plane ride seems almost as if the plane is frozen in time. But I'm able to past the time by finishing typing up the final chapter, using a lap top I commandeered from a business man who would much rather sleep then work. I send a copy to the editor back in the states who sends it to be published immediately. "_Mending the Broken Line _will be on the shelves first thing tomorrow morning." Replies the editor in the e-mail. With that, I know that by tomorrow, the whole US would know what really happened. For the first time in a long time, I'm able to sit back and just…relax. A feeling I haven't had in a while.

A couple hours later, the pilot's voice comes over the speakers, "Good morning ladies and gentlemen, we're making our descent into the O'Hare airport. Please put your seats and trays in the up right position." He states cheerfully. I yawn, obliging him like the rest of the tired passengers. Once we land and have come to a stop, excitement dances in my eyes. I wait in the line of fatigued passengers as we shuffle off the plane. Standing at the top of the stairs leading from the plan to the tarmac, I take in a deep breath of the Illinois air I've been so deprived off. A commotion near the building catches my attention as a smile grips my face. Standing there, holding a huge banner that states, '_Welcome Home Erin'_, are my closet friends and family. Without a moment to spare, without letting the bitter sweetness that has plagued me since the betrayal off-setting me, I run down the stairs and into the embrace of the ones I love.

Once I make it home after a night of celebrating my return with my friends, I slip into my apartment. Dust covers most of the objects in the room but it's not like there's a lot of stuff there to begin with. Most of my stuff is packed away or at my parent's house in Wisconsin. Against my better judgement of getting some sleep, I flip open my lap top and access my e-mail account. Only one new e-mail catches my attention, it's from my editor. I double click on it as soon as I realize who it is.

"Dear Erin, congratulations on your book hitting number 1 on the New York best seller list! I knew your story would make it. I've gotten many letters from different talk shows begging for you to be on with them! Besides that there have been a lot of letters addressed to you, praising you for telling what really happened. But with the good, comes some bad…there's some flame mail. I debated tossing them away but I kept them incase you wanted to read them via e-mail. Hope to talk soon, your friendly editor, Jane Smith." Ends the e-mail. In that e-mail, all the happiness disappears as I'm brought to the sudden realization that everyone knows the story of the task force. From the sounds of things, most people liked it. But I'm more concerned about the minority's opinion and what they'll do. Without delay, I send an e-mail to the editor, telling him I'd love to appear on some of the talk shows he listed and that I'd appreciated it if he sent me the flame mail. I honestly believed it to be just like, 'Oh yeah right! That's not true!' or 'You're just a sergeant, why should we listen to you?' I was wrong, **dead** wrong.


	23. Death Threats

I sit on the couch in studio one A in Rockefeller plaza, otherwise known as the Today show's studio. In a chair, a couple feet away, sits the aged news caster Mat Lauer. He smiles at me. "So, Erin. What was it like to live through all the events that occurred in your book?" he asks, referring to my _Mending the Broken line_ story.

I smile as I fold my leg over the other under my black and blue designed dress. "Well, it sounds scary. But as a soldier you have to go through a lot of scary situations." I reply, sparing him the gory details.

He nods, "Now, what made you write your accounts down and turn them into a book?" he questions.

I blink then frown, "Well because my Captains we're wrongly accused and we were used for Shepard's own personal gain." I answer shortly.

Mat nods, "So, how has the public responded to your book?" he asks and I stop.

I gulp, smoothing out my dress, "To answer your question, Mat, I've received a good majority of positive letters." I said, not too keen on telling about the minorities responds.

Mat raises an eyebrow, his ears picking up an untold story like a blood hound. "And what of the minority?" he asks.

I sigh; dreading the question even though I'd knew it would come up eventually. "Well, negative feedback is what makes up the minority. Mostly death threats, you know the usual." I answer flatly.

Mat is taken aback by this, "Now why do you think that is?" he breathes.

I shrug, "Because there's always people out there like that. Nobody is loved 100%, that's impossible. But mostly it's because my book makes Shepard look bad even though it's strictly the truth. I've gotten three bomb scares and currently have had ten failed assassinations against myself. So I'm working on my 14th life right now." I reply. I can't help but smile to myself, these threats may be scary but getting past 13 of them is always a good sign. _What did they think that they could get me? Please, this joyous game we play, my haters, is fun but I'll always have the upper hand._

Mat nods solemnly, "Alright. You can check out Erin's new book, _Mending the Broken Line,_ on shelves now." States Mat, talking to the camera. With that, the interview ends.

A muscular built man walks on set, his lad head shinning dully. "Miz. Nirent, I suggest we move. A couple of hoodlums with guns were recently apprehended in the crowd upfront." Reveals the man in a baritone voice.

I nod, my face twisting into a frown, "Is the double ready, Pete?" I ask, standing up and smoothing my dress.

He nods, "We're sending her out now. Your car is outback." He informs me.

I nod then look over at Mat and I shake his hand briskly, "It was great talking with you, Mr. Laurer. I only wish people would be as unbiased as you." I sigh.

He smiles, pushing his glasses up a bit on his nose, "That's the job of us news casters, to remain unbiased on some of the toughest topics. You learn that once you've been reporting the horrors of the world for as long as I have." He states lightly.

I smile, feeling like we both share this feeling. Pete coughs, drawing my attention to him. "We really should be going before they realize your decoy's a…decoy." He warns. Simply I nod and give Mat a parting wave before I follow my body guard out into the back alleyway. I slip on some sun glasses and follow him out into the alleyway where my blue mustang sits waiting for me. A sound of footsteps causes both of us to snap our head in the direction. Standing there is a man with a shot gun. Everything turns slow motion as the guy aims the gun at me, pulling the trigger. I feel the bullet hit me hard in the chest, causing me to tumble backwards. Without hesitation, Pete shoots at the guy and the assailant takes off on foot. Pete dashes over to me, "Erin, Erin! Don't die, not now!" he pleads.

My head's spinning but despite that, I stand up slowly and brush my self off. Pete blinks, confusion present in his usual harden face. I smile sweetly, "Bullet proof vest, my friend. Bullets still hurt when they hit it, though…" I inform, patting him on the cheek before I enter the driver seat of the mustang. We start off. "So you get in touch with the courts to see if I have a case?" I ask, not removing my sun glassed eyes from the road.

Pete nods as he pulls out a lap top, "From the evidence in your book, it's more than enough to clear you friends. If the people will accept this, it's hard to say. Shepard is like what Zakhaev was to the Russians, a hero that was gunned down." Pete said.

A smile crosses my face, "Funny, they both were killed by the same two people." I reveal, laughing slightly. Pete laughs, about to comment but he's cut off when a car side swipes us. I maintain control of the car as the car swerved out and back at us, intending to crush up against some parked cars. I slam on the brakes, the other car just missing the front of the car. The occupants of the vehicle open fire on our car. Pete growls something under his breath as he slaps a new clip into his M9. I speed up, going around them on the driver's side. Pete takes this chance, shooting out the tires. Their car screeches, trying to stop the enviable. Their car rolls three times before coming to a stop on its side. I stop the car and jump out, against Pete's protests. The driver is slumped haft way out the window and doesn't sense my presence till I cock my desert eagle next to his head. Weakly, he looks up at me as blood trickles from the corner of his mouth. "Why do you want to kill me? Tell me….TELL ME!" I shout.

He winces at my sudden out burst but he finds the strength to smile, "Our boss…sent us to kill you. He doesn't want…a bitch defiling the face of the great general." He spits.

I assume he means Shepard and this ticks me off that he's calling Shepard 'great'. "Who's your boss?" I growl, wanting to shoot this guy so much.

He frowns, "Now why would I do that? It'll ruin the surprise." He said playfully.

Before I can comment, someone grabs me from behind and jabs the barrel of a gun against my head. "'Ello, poppet. Didn't see that coming now did you?" he hisses into my ear.

I smirk, "Bitch please, don't flatter your self." I snarl, disarming him and pointing his gun at the failed attacker while I pointed my desert eagle at the dying driver. "I win." I reply smartly. The would be attacker laughs and I glance over at him, feeling my blood pressure boil. "What's so funny?" I demand darkly.

"Y-you think you've won!?! It's only just begun." He laughs, smiling at me slyly.

I shake my head, "Then I guess you've mistaken the beginning of the end for the beginning because that's what his is. No way am I going to let everything I've worked for, everything I've lost be fucked up by some stupid radical's opinions." I snipe. With that, the NYPD squeal onto the scene and apprehend the failed assassins. I enter the car and drive away.

Pete gives me a dark look, "Didn't I tell you to stay in the car?" he growls, not pleased with me going against him.

I shrug, "I think so, but I was already out of the car when you said that. Besides, I had to know why they attacked me and this was the first time someone actually answered me. Somebody, their so called boss, wants me dead and I want to know who they are. No doubt they're somehow connected to Shepard..." I theorize.

Pete nods, his face softens, "True, but that still could have turned out badly. You gotta learn that sooner or later, when you fly off the handle bars again, your not going to be able to recover as easily-or at all." He cautions.

I blink a frown coming to my face as I remember all the times I flew off the handle bars in the 141. But I force a smile as I say, "Haven't you learn anything about me Pete? They've tried to **kill** me, 15 times! Tch, Hitler had the same number of assassinations against him and look how he ended!" I state confidently.

Pete smirks, "So you're comparing yourself to Hitler?" he asks jokingly.

I smile, shaking my head, "Not with his ideas, just his way of survival. I mean, seriously! They tried killing him 15 times and none succeed. Looks like I'm going to beat his record. So that Jew-hater can suck it and roll over in his grave!" I reply lightly.

Pete rolls his eyes, "Sounds like you actually enjoy being almost killed." He grumbles.

I look over at him, smirking, "It's interesting. Brings back memories. Besides, I always have the upper hand with my experience. So it's all good fun." I reply, returning my focus to the road.


	24. To kill a Mockingbird

Sometime after, my phone rings in my purse. Keeping one hand on the wheel, I dig around in my purse till I pull out my phone. I look at the number and I raise an eyebrow in confusion. The number is restricted and I'm tempted to just let it ring. But I go against my temptation, answer the phone. "Hello?" I ask nervously, feeling my stomach flip-flop.

There's a pause at the other end. "Erin Nirent." He states questionably.

I look over at Pete before answering, "Yes, who is this?" I breathe shakily.

"You're an annoying mocking bird. Don't go through with the trial, if you know what's good for you." The voice warns darkly.

Before I can retort, the call gets disconnected and I stare at my phone. "Who was that?" he asks with concern heavy in his face.

I glance at him, my eyes fear stricken, "I-I don't know, but whoever it is doesn't suggest I go through with the trial." I mutter quietly.

Pete blinks, then furrows his brow, "Oh, it probably was just some stupid kid prank calling you or something. Don't let it get to you." He said, trying to reassure me.

I shake my head, "No, it wasn't. He knew my number…only close friends and family know my personal cell. Also, his number on my phone was restricted which I'm pretty sure NO kid knows how to do…" I mumble, getting lost in my thoughts.

"Just forget about it, I'm sure it's nothing." presses Pete, trying to get me off the subject.

I nod, "Yeah…yeah you're probably right. They were most likely trying to psyche me out or something." I mutter. I let out a shaky breath, knowing he's right. After all, I've made it past 15 attempts. There's pretty much nothing that surprises me anymore. Almost nothing.

The trial opens in the World Court, located in the Netherlands. Jurors from all over the world file into their seats while the judge takes his place the head. Ironic much, the judge is from Switzerland. How that happened, I can't say. From the start, it looks like I've got the court on Mactavish and Price's side. The judge rubs his forehead, "Ms. Nirent and Mr. Starmen, please approach the bench." He mumbles. I walk up, along with the lawyer representing Shepard, Mr. Starmen. "I'm going to be frank with you two. The evidence is weighs heavy against the former General Shepard." Breathes the judge as he takes off his glasses and cleans them, "Now unless you, Mr. Starmen, can pull some other evidence stating otherwise. I'm going to have to say Mr. Mactavish and Mr. Price are now free men, where ever they may be." It struck me as odd when the judge used 'Mr.' to refer to Mactavish and Price. Hm, guess I'm just used to hearing them be called Captain.

Starmen runs a nervous hand through his trimly cut brown hair, "Your honor, I have one more piece of evidence up my sleeve. I'm requesting that I be allowed to present it, in hopes it may have some impact on you and the jurors' decision." He pleads.

The judge nods, "Fair enough, you may." Said the judge, waves us off. We return back to our tables.

Starmen is shuffling papers on the table anxiously. He straightens his tie before coughing shortly, "Your honor, I have to admit. _**I**_ can not come up with any evidence proving what Ms. Nirent has said is false." He admits hesitantly. I smile slyly, feeling I've finally won. "But I know someone who can." The doors to the court room open, drawing everyone's attention to the visitor. The media news casters hold their breath, waiting to see who enters to room, wondering if they'll be news worthy. As the person enters the room, the smile disappears in a heart beat as I stare at the man who caused all this: General Shepard. He walks in, an eye patch covering the eye he lost when Mactavish threw the 'fatal' knife into. Murmurs fill the room as people watch him. With every step, my heart beats faster and my palms sweat. I look over at Pete then back at Shepard. He enters the judging area and glances at me once before taking the seat at the stand. "The man in question, General Shepard, did not die in Afghanistan. He lived through the attack and sits here today, the only evidence of his attack being his eye patch. Now I ask my opponent to go ahead and ask away." States Starmen, sitting back in his chair with sad smile on his face.

I blink then walk over to the stand where Shepard sits. "Shepard. Do you believe what I have said to be false?" I ask, standing firm and not letting him see me falter.

He refuses to look at me, instead looking out into the crowd, "Every word." He answers shortly. Why do I have a feeling I've heard his voice recently…

I frown, "Even though there are multiple accounts, accusing you of these acts? You still believe what you did was right?" I question shortly, growing tension in me.

His eye looks at me before returning to the audience of civilians. "Yes, I do believe what I did was correct and the two people who tried to kill me should be the ones on trial. NOT me." Shepard replies darkly.

Scowling as I stand in front of his harden gaze of indifference, "You are solely responsible for the genocide that took place at Zakhaev internation airport, the deaths of countless service men and American Civilians! The evidence is ridiculously heavy against you! So, please…give me at least one reason to say you're innocent!" I snipe sharply.

Finally, he looks at me, his one eye burning deep into my soul. "If the mocking bird's dead, who is left to sing their song?" he inquires out of the blue. I blink, suddenly everything clicks together. My eyes widen, realizing abruptly that Shepard was the one on the phone. He smiles slyly at me and I'm about to accuse him of badgering me but a loud pop and a warm sensation hits my back. I fall to the floor, bleeding out from a gun shot wound to the back. Shepard looks down at me, smiling with satisfaction at how smoothly that all went. The bailiffs easily contain the fun man while and ambulance is called. The cameras' feed are quickly shut off, not wishing for their viewers to see someone die on film.

Pete kneels next to me, watching a puddle form of my blood, "Where was your vest?!" he growls at me, but more mad at himself for letting this happen.

Blood trickles out the corner of my mouth as the corners of my mouth turn upward softly, "F-forgot it. Hey, guess I just tied…" I stammer, feeling myself become weak.

Pete stares at me, for a second not knowing what I'm saying. But when he does, his eyes widen as he grips my shoulder, "No, no don't say that! You're going to make it!!" pleads Pete, looking around to see if the paramedics had arrived yet.

I close my eyes slowly, starting to loose consciousness. "N-not this time…my friend, this is where we part." I choke out, coughing up blood.

Shepard smirks, "Looks like it. Now you'll be out of my hair." Comment Shepard smartly.

Pete shoots him a look and I weakly look at the General, "Y-you know w-what Shepard? S-shut your face, because when I'm a ghost, I'm coming back…and I-I'm stealing your m-mother fucking keys." I growl weakly, placing my head back against the ground and letting it fall to one side. Slowly, I drift off and I faintly see them: my friends. Happiness pulls at me and I start towards them but something stops me. I look down at my ankle and see a chain.

Ghost crosses his arms, smiling softly at me without his mask darkening his handsome face, "'Fraid it ain't your time, love." He mutters.

Tears brim my eyes as I stare at them, "no…I don't want to go!" I cry.

Archer smiles kindly, "Bitch, please! You have your whole life ahead of you. Don't stop living it for us." He remarks lightly.

Flustering, I knows he's right. But I can't bring myself to agree with him. Roach approaches me, smiling, "It's time for you to go back, Erin." He said, regrettably.

I look up at him, a tear rolling down my face, "I miss you guys…" I choke out.

He smirks, "Don't cry." He said lightly, wiping the tear from my face, "We'll always be with you, in there." As he pointed to my chest.

I blink, "What, in my lung? No offense but if you guys were in my lungs I'd probably die-" I start, confused.

"Oh, he means your heart!" growls Ghost shaking his head.

I link then laugh, "Oh-whoops! My bad.-" I laugh. I start to see myself fading away and I look at Roach quickly, "I'm not going to see you for a while, am I?" I ask, feeling the tears come to my eyes once again. He shakes his head sadly and I breathe shakily. "Then…I want to finish what we started." I remark confidently. Before he can question me, I grab his face and kiss him long and passionately. We break and see Ghost and Archer playing violins. I pout childishly, "Oh way to ruin the moment guys." I laugh. The fading becomes more obvious now. I frown then look at my friends. "I guess this is goodbye…" I mutter.

Ghost sighs, "'Fraid so. Tell the two captains we said hi, will ya?" he scoffs.

I nod, "I will. Goodbye…my friends." I choke out. With that, I fall into blackness. When I open my eyes, I see I'm once again in a hospital. Pete stands by my bedside to the left.

"Welcome back to the world of the living." He comments, lightly. Narrowing my eyes, I sit up despite the pain in my back. "Hey! You shouldn't move around-" warns he warns.

But I hold up my hand, stopping him in his tracks, "I have to get this out of my system…I HAVE HAD IT WITH THESE GOD DAMN HOSIPITAL ROOMS IN THESE GOD DAMN HOSITPITAL!" I yell. After my hissy fit, I collapse back into the pillows, wincing as the adrenaline pumps blood through the wound in my back. Breathing heavily, I look over at Pete, "OK, I'm done. You were saying?" I ask, feeling better now that I had gotten that thought off of my chest.

Pete smirks, "It's good to have you back, Erin." He said.

I close my eyes, a smile spreading across my face, "It's good to be back, Pete. Now, down to business. What the hell happened?!" I inquire, opening my eyes and staring intently at Pete.

He sighs, rubbing the back of his shaven head, "Well, the shooter turned out to be the lawyer, Mr. Starmen. Turns out, he was Shepard's right hand man when Shepard ruled over your Task force. Course, Mr. Starmen changed his name so no one would know this. This fact was brought to light a couple minutes after you were whisked away to the hospital. When the judge heard that, he laid out the sentence right then and there on the table." States Pete, pausing for dramatic effect.

I look at him, raising my head from the pillow, "And…AND?!!" I badger, wanting to know what the future holds for Shepard.

"Shepard's got himself a date with the needle. The judge said Shepard's acts were 'hennish' enough to be awarded the death penalty." Reveals Pete, crossing his arms.

I breathe a sigh of relief and set my head back onto the pillow. "And so the beast is slain. Oh! What about Price and Mactavish?" I ask, looking back at Pete.

Pete smirks, "Innocent and cleared of all charges. Looks like you've won." He replies.

I smile, "I check mated Shepard and so he fell, releasing my two kings. And so this game is over. But I'm not the sole victor; this isn't just my truth I've written. This is my friends' truth too. This is victory is just as well theirs' as it is mine." I remark, feeling very philosophical.

"True, but you were the one who risked everything for us." Comments a voice.

I look over and can't help but smile at one of my Captains, Price. "True, but I still consider this our victory. Now, where's our favorite Scotsman?" I ask, looking around cheerfully. Almost on cue, Mactavish walks in through the door while chomping on a bag of freetos. It's then that my stomach growls, "OK, now you're going to share those, right?" I ask, giving him the puppy eyes.

He smiles, offering me the bag. I reach for one but just as I do, a nurse busts in. Her long blonde locks float behind her as her dark blue eyes look at me fixedly. "Hey, NO! You can't eat." She snaps.

I blink, this woman looking very familiar. But I can't place my finger on it. My stomach growls loudly, yelling at me for letting a simple nurse stop me from feeding it. "Excuse me? Why, I'm hungry!" I moan.

She stands firm, crossing her arms, "Sorry, Doctor's orders. You just woke up from surgery and you need to maintain an empty stomach for four hours." She said shortly.

My face drops, not believing the words coming from her lips. "You **got** to be kidding me…I CAN'T WAIT FOUR HOURS!! I'LL BE DEAD! Starved, shriveled up from lack of nutrients! My cells will go, like, hypertonic or something and I'll die!" I cry, pouting childishly.

Mactavish laughs, walking over to the lady. He places an arm around her shoulder and look back at my shocked expression. "Erin, this is my girl Cynthia that I told you about." He chuckles, kissing her on the top of her head.

She giggles, "Yeah, and don't worry. We were just kidding about the not eating part." She reassures me, drawing a sigh of relief from me.

"Holy crap, you seriously scared me for a second. Well, I guess hospitals aren't all that bad. Though, I really don't feel like visiting them every other month. Thank you very much!" I scoff, causing everyone to laugh.

Cynthia kisses Mactavish quickly before disappearing to do other nurse jobs. Mactavish hands me the rest of the freetos bag which I take graciously. "Well, just think of it this way. You won't have to go as often as you did when you were apart of the task force." He sighed, the realization that I've resigned from the force hitting him hard.

I pause, looking at him with an apologetic look, "Yeah, I guess so." I mumble, dejectedly.

There's an awkward silence between us before Price decides to break it. "Well, Shepard's execution is tomorrow. You should get some rest Erin." He suggests.

I pout, folding my arms, "Please, I can sleep when I'm dead!" I respond cynically.

Price rolls his eyes, a smile coming to his face, "You never cease to amaze…" he remarks lightly.

I shrug, a smile flashing across my face, "Oh what can I say, I'm just that weird." I retort lightly.


	25. One last Goodbye

The next day, I stand with Price, Mactavish and Pete along with numerous news reporters, in front of a glass window as Shepard is being prepared for the lethal injection. A feeling of relief hits me as I realize this is it for Shepard. He rolls his head over towards the window and stares intently at it. Even though it's a one way window, I feel as if he's staring directly at me. The numbing agent is stabbed into his arm and he goes limp, though his eyes remain on me. The lethal dose is uncovered and I let out a shaky breath. "Here it comes….Shepard's time." Mutters Price dully. The executioner takes the syringe and positions it to be injected. Just before it's jabbed into Shepard's eyes, I look away. I may have seen a lot of horrid things in my time, but needles and stitches still gross me out. The heart monitor hooked up to Shepard beeps slowly and suddenly flat lines, signaling to us that Shepard is no longer of this world.

I sigh, turning away from the window and looking at Mactavish. "So it's over." I state, a frown placed delicately on my pixie face.

He nods, "So it seems." He replies. After paving a way through the horde of reporters, we find ourselves outside the prison. Pete goes to get the car, leaving me to stand with my two comrades. A wall of dark clouds marches forward, engulfing the sun. Cool rain begins to drizzle from the dark clouds. I let out a sigh of relief and close my eyes, feeling the cool rain hit my face. "So I guess this'll be our last goodbye…" mutter Mactavish, causing me to open my eyes and look at him

I never noticed how much he's changed still the days with the task force. His Mohawk has given way to a crew cut and his eyes seem to be tired. But new hope brightens his once tired eyes. I sigh, "…'Fraid so." I said, sadness playing in my voice.

Price heaves a sigh, "It's going to be hard, you know, to get back into the monotone life of an everyday civi." He states, pointing that fact out.

I nod, "Yeah, it will be." I admit. All this time, I hadn't thought about this end. Yet here I am, at the end of this story chapter. The rain starts to pick up, but I don't move to shelter under the roof. Reason being is the rain hides the tears that are running down the face that I don't want my friends to see, though they know I have. Pete pulls up the car and I look over at him then back to my friends. "So, I-I guess this is where we part." I choke, hating saying goodbye. Goodbyes are always the hardest thing to say…oh how I hate them.

Mactavish looks away, dejectedly. "Yeah….G'bye Dear." Breathes Price, smiling as he used the nicknamed he gave me on our first encounter. I hug him briefly before going over to Mactavish.

He sighs and hugs me around the shoulders, "You know, there will always be a spot for you on the team-if you change you mind." He mumbles in my ear.

I pull away and beam up at him, "Thanks, but my answer still remains the same. Goodbye Mactavish…Price." I breathe, saluting them rigidly before I enter my car and leave for home. I look out through the back window, watching them as they disappeared in the distance.

* * *

Author's Note: And so, I have come to the 'end' of this story. Technically, not really. From here, you the reader have two choices to make. You can choose which end you believe to be true, which one you approve of. Honestly, it's your choice people. I love both endings that's why I wrote them. They won't be place in the same story as A fine Line, but two different 'one shots'. You can choose from _Circles_ or _Mending the Broken Line._ Also, please note that they are one shots. Meaning, nothing comes after them so don't ask about me continuing it. Well, I hope you enjoyed my story and will read some of my other stories I've written. It was great writing this, your friendly writer: Erin Peepsta.


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